The Hidden One
by Niendil
Summary: She was not supposed to survive, Padme's surprising third child, but she did. Obi-Wan takes it a sign and raise her as his own, training her in the Jedi ways to be the future of the Force. But when she is sent to face her destiny will she be strong enough? (Revised and Rewritten story based on my original work Hidden)
1. Prologue

**Prologue:**

The room was dark and nearly silent, save for the soft beeps of constant running machinery. Her body lie, prone, gently covered with a white cloth as though she had only just gone to sleep. They hadn't had it within them yet to redress the senator's body for a funeral. Under the blanket, the stains of labor were still caked on her thighs.

Somewhere in the depths of her cooling womb, life stirred, pushing its way out the lifeless corpse. Naked eyes would not see it, natural ears could not hear it, but the thin, heartbeat was enough for the sleeping maidbot.

For a moment, the droid slowly scanned the room, bright eyes roving the silent darkness for the life signs that had woken it. She started as she noticed it was from the body on the bed. Moving quickly, the droid went first to Padme's chest, expecting that perhaps the senator was not dead after all, but, indeed her pulse was nonexistent and her body was losing warmth. No, the droid realized, the heartbeat was coming from deeper within.

She scanned the body and gasped as the infant's form came across the scan. "Oh my. Three. My readings said only two. Oh my." The baby was too weak to push itself out and with its mother dead, there were few chances for it to survive. Acting quickly, the droid removed the shift covering Padme's lower half and pressed gently at her stomach until she located the general shape of the infant. With mechanical precision, the droid sliced into the mother, shifted through the organs, and pulled free the child.

A girl: frail, and thin; skin almost translucent so the blue veins seemed stark even in this darkness. It was a miracle she had made it to term at all.

Giving no care to the senator's body – she was dead after all – the droid swept across the room and activated the Infant Emergency Care Unit. Lights suddenly flooded the room as machinery whirred to life and the droid gently placed the girl into the care of her equipment.

The maidbot looked down at the slowly wiggling but silent newborn and sighed. "I must alert Master Kenobi."

The maidbot's search to find Obi-Wan was cut short when it noticed the Jedi master leaning against the wall – despite the late hour - holding another sleeping bundle in his arms. At the robot's approach he looked up and by the redness in his eyes it could tell he had been crying.

"Master Kenobi, there was another child."

Obi-Wan frowned and instinctively shook his head. The information was difficult enough to process on its own, but combined with his own swirling thoughts, the words struggled to reach his conscious.

"How?" He finally said.

"She is very weak. I believe the other two monopolized most of the nourishment and overshadowed her development."

Again, Obi-Wan frowned, concern whisking away his other thoughts. "Show me."

"Yes, sir."

The pair returned quickly to the medical room, now fully alight as the many machines worked on the tiny infant. Several tubes and wires had been attached to her skin and the glass of the unit was slightly fogged as it adjusted the temperature to keep her warm. To the droid, the child looked worse and she could not hide her disappointed sigh. "I do not know that she will be able to survive very long. She did not receive enough care while in the mother and was in the corpse without anything for quite some time, considering her condition."

As she spoke, Obi-Wan crossed the room and peered at the baby. She still wiggled weakly and her mouth would open a little as if she wanted to cry but simply didn't have the strength. As though in response, the infant boy, who had been silent in his arms, let out a long wail. Immediately, the droid came over to address the infant and shush him. In the silence, the two could just make out, a soft gurgled, cry, just as weak as the baby making it.

Again, the droid sighed. "The best course of action is to make her passing as comfortable as possible."

"No," he answered, eyes locked on the little form. "No, do everything you can to keep her alive."

If asked later, Obi-wan would say he felt Padme's eyes on him from the other side of the room; heard her pleading that her children survived. _They are all I have left of him._

"Master Kenobi, I'm sure – "

"She is the daughter of two of the strongest wills I know. She will fight; she will live. I will not abandon her."

For a third time, the maid bot sighed. "As you request."

 _ **To be continued…**_


	2. Ariala

**Chapter 1: Ariala**

The wind whistled fiercely across the dunes and plateaus of the desert planet, whipping sand and tree into its fury. The small critters that had not long ago found deep, quiet, shelter chittered and lowed as they ducked into whatever crevices they could. Every instinct told them a storm was coming.

Further across the plains, a womp rat, just darting into a hole, popped its head up to examine the landscape, beady eyes rolling around, nose twitching as it once again checked the air. Were it not for the dancing sands, the little rodent would have been quite startled to see the only life form still without coverage.

A solitary figure stood, unmoved by the gale, tan clothing nearly blending into the environment. She wore no extra protection from the wind, and her bare limbs and face, tanned from the blazing sun, glowed red where it had been rubbed raw by the sand. Still, she made no movement, save soft breaths, for her mind was far flung from her body, deep into the Force of the earth; the breath of the rocks, the heartbeat of the wind that combined to create the living world. She struggled to slide herself into their foreign rhythm, blend with them and she was close, so close…eagerly, she threw herself in the wave, her aura exploding out to bend the motion to her favor. And the planet snapped back, throwing the power back into her with enough force, the girl rocked on her feet and fell to her knees.

Realization of her failure sank into her pit like a stone and she screamed into the storm before gathering herself up and stalking away.

In its hole, the little womp rat shivered.

* * *

The small hut was barely more than two round rooms piled atop each other, the walls constructed by the standard sandstone that made it seem nothing more than a peak on a hill. Inside, the main living area was crammed tight with cushions and a small table, while just behind, a kitchen stood just large enough to serve its primary need. The old, repurposed, once abandoned home was never meant to be a place of long-term comfort, but it was all the girl knew and its isolation from the sprawling cities, meant she knew of nothing better.

So, when she stepped through the small door and immediately had to step around a large storage chest, she paid it little mind. "I'm back."

At the table, an old man casually glanced up, nodded and returned to his thin book. "You were trying it again."

The girl scoffed and flung herself on the larger of the two stuffed chairs. "Trying is about all I am doing."

"Being one with the Force does not mean becoming master of it," Ben said absentmindedly. "Nature must run its own course."

"But it's not impossible?"

Ben stopped and turned strongly to the girl. "To control the natural world is to corrupt the Force to your own bidding. Such malice is a trait of the dark side, my young Padawan."

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, Master."

The old Jedi sighed and shifted to fully take in the sulking girl on the couch. Sixteen years had passed since he took her as his own. Her life now impressed him, a gift from the Force, he was sure.

" _I cannot continue to linger here," Obi-Wan hissed as he looked around. A week had passed since the fall of the republic and Palpatine was not quiet in his takeover. His clones marched in force and his ships dominated the stars. Obi-Wan was only still safe because he waited in the unwanted reaches of the outer rim. Still, it was not wise to test that for much longer. The secretive medical station on Polis Massa was too close to Mustafar for comfort. Unfortunately, leaving was much easier said than done. His relocation was hindered by two newborns, one still tottering on the edge of life._

 _The Jedi looked again at the small child. She had regained color in her skin and often babbled lightly. She ate well and her system, though slow and weak, processed nourishment. He had certain hope that, were she to remain under this level of care, she would grow to be a wonderfully normal child. But they were out of time._

" _I will need to move her."_

" _I'm afraid that is woefully ill-advised, Master Kenobi." The maidbot answered. "It is impressive she has survived this long, but to move her out of the unit will reduce her chances of life to less than ten percent."_

 _Kenobi sighed. He did not want to take the chance that the young girl could die but there was a guarantee of their death should they not leave soon. This station was not designed for such long term care and the massive amounts of power it took to keep the little babe – and her brother - alive meant a shuttle traveled from the asteroid daily to gather fresh power cells. He was too low on credits to continue the cost and too paranoid that the back and forth travel would be noticed._

 _For him, there was little other choice._

 _He turned back to the droid. "Do everything you can to strengthen her by next week."_

In the end, they had managed to escape with little detection and through the graciousness of the Force, the young girl had been strong enough to survive. Her life was more precious to him because of that. She was more than his Padawan, she was his daughter.

But he was not who he saw within her. She had Padme's heart, full of a passion to help, to right wrongs – often she'd rescue lost travelers from the sand people or even care for the rodents most others disregarded – but she also had Anakin's blinding determination and short temper. As with her parents, most times, the two personalities blended wonderfully, aiding the other as she moved forward; heart guiding strength. He was sure this was a contributing factor to her development.

In truth, despite her young age, he was certain, had the old council still existed, her strength was enough to permit her to take the Trials. There was a part of him that was glad that was not the case. She was stronger than her maturity could handle and often she sought new challenges only to prove to herself that she can overcome them.

He had been the one to tell her of the great Jedi masters strong enough to hold back a hurricane for two days; how they did it not with pure strength but by contorting the essence within the storm to their own inner calm, holding back the rage until the city was evacuated.

He regretted that choice now. "Ariala."

From the couch, the girl looked up, still pouting.

"Are you not satisfied in your strength?"

Ariala cringed and looked away from the old Jedi. For a moment she was silent. Then, "It's not that. It was too easy, wasn't it?" She looked back to Ben, the question honestly in her eyes.

"Too easy?"

Ariala sighed. "Getting to this point. You always told me so many stories of the old Jedi. How they would train their whole lives to reach even the point of Knight, let alone Master. How, for some, it took years to even learn to bend the Force on command." She paused and looked at her hands as though something were strange about them. "But then there's me." With a mindless flick of her wrist, the pots and décor in the kitchen behind her took to the air and danced. She paid them no mind and continued speaking. "I have no one to compare to but stories. I think I'm strong because I can do this much but maybe this is nothing. Or maybe I've drifted to the wrong side and have taken some terrible shortcut. Or perhaps this will come to be all I am capable of. I do not know and not knowing has frightened me."

The kitchen quieted as things returned to their proper place and she raised her eyes to Ben again. "I don't seek to control nature…I just want to know where my strength truly lies. Is that wrong of me, Master?"

It was now Ben's turn to turn away. Yes, she had much more of her father in her than she knew. The realization brought tears to his eyes. After a tense silence, in which he noticed Ariala's eyes failed to leave him, he spoke.

"I believe it is time I tell you about one other Jedi."

"Master – "

"No, Padawan. This is tale you need to hear. Come." He gestured to the open seat at the other end of the table.

"You know of the history of the Old Republic, before the ruling power before the Empire. Of the Jedi Council, the clone wars, the overthrown senate. This tale is before that…and through it."

The girl frowned in confusion – how in so many years was there a tale she had not yet heard? – and took a seat at the table.

"Thirty years ago," Ben started, "when I was still but a Padawan, only a few years older than you are now, my master and I were sent on a mission of peace to ascertain dissent in the then Trade Federation. The mission went quite badly, and our ship was damaged. We were forced to the outer rim – here to Tatooine – for repairs and supplies.

"In our wait, we came upon a young boy named Anakin. He had an unbelievable connection to the Force and my master decided to take him with us, to be trained, should the council approve. It took time for them to accept the boy – he was older than most who begin the training and Master Yoda was concerned about his future - however, he was eventually accepted, though by then, my Master had already passed during the battle of Naboo. I took him as my own Padawan and saw what my master did – he had the true potential to be the Chosen One of prophecy." Ben paused, as though considering if he truly wanted to continue. After a moment, he did.

"But Anakin was headstrong, overly confident in his abilities – he was always quite the best at everything he took to – and hungry for more. Despite the rules of the Jedi, Anakin married Senator Amidala in secret and, during the Clone Wars, she became pregnant.

"Looking back, I believe the responsibility of Jedi Knight, General, husband, and father-to-be, combined with his determined decision that he had not accomplished enough, drove him. Anakin was tormented by fear that he would lose his wife as he had lost his mother, fear that ultimately pulled him to the dark side. When it was revealed that the Chancellor was the Dark Lord of the Sith, Anakin joined with him and cemented himself as Darth Vader." Ben stopped, the memories still too painful for him to embrace. He lost a friend and brother that night on Mustafar. No matter how many decades passed between then and today, he would never forgive himself for letting Anakin take that path. Nor for leaving him, when he could have stopped Vader's rise.

Ariala let him sit, contemplating. That Vader was once a Jedi and that Anakin Skywalker existed were things she had learned already. That they were the same, that the hero of the clone wars was now the menace in black, however, was a shocking revelation. Already her mind pieced together the lesson she was meant to garner from his story. Her heart trembled and she pushed fear aside. "What about his wife?" she finally asked, attempting to pull Ben from his clearly painful recollection.

Ben sighed and pressed on. "Yes. Amidala. She was nearly as headstrong as he had been, and so she refused to let him go without a fight. Against my judgement, she went to him, hoping to turn him back, but Anakin's grip on the dark side was too strong. He had been blinded by fear and loss and pain and could not see his way to the light again. He believed she betrayed him, and Anakin attacked her. The stress on her body, so late in her pregnancy, sent her into a difficult labor. She died in childbirth."

The girl visibly deflated. True, not every story she had been told had a happy ending. Many brave knights fell in many a brave deed, but there were no heroics here. Only greed and anger and broken hearts. She felt angry tears prick at her eyes. "You think I'm going to become like him…" She looked up to see Ben watching her. "That's why you told me this…isn't it?"

"No." Ben stood and moved to the storage chest. "And yes." Opening the heavy lid, he began to rifle through his old belongings, talking slowly as he did. "I did not quite finish. Amidala lost her life in childbirth, but her children – for she had been pregnant with three - survived. But it was too late to think they could live any kind of happy life. The Jedi had been killed, the senators loyal to the republic were scattered; order and democracy had fallen. If it came to be known that they lived, we feared the Empire would take them. They were their father's children after all – strongly attuned to the Force and destined for great strength." He stood, a large cloth bundle in his arms, and hobbled back to the table.

Carefully unwrapping it, he continued. "Master Yoda and I decided to separate the children, hide them, raise them, and hope that they could one day be the future we needed." The edges of the cloth fell away and inside were five bright crystals, wiring, mirrors, and various tools she had never seen before. "One daughter," Ben continued, slowly sorting through the pile, "was sent with a Senator we could trust, the son to his aunt and uncle, and the other daughter, born frail and near death, came to live with me." Ben tore his eyes from the cloth and bore them into Ariala's.

The girl stared back in silence, mouth slightly agape. It was no secret to her that she was adopted. Nor even that she had been rescued from the ravaged planet during the fall of the republic. But this was beyond what she could have thought.

"Then…me…Anakin – Darth Vader – is my father?" she choked out, still trying to process everything.

Ben nodded. "I had hoped you would be older when I had to tell you – "

"Why tell me now?"

"Because I see in you much of your father – and much of your mother – but I fear you could sway too easily toward one. And I do not trust myself to keep you from the path I could not keep your father from taking."

"But I won't –"

"And I am sure you are stronger in mind than he." Ben interjected, voice firm. "You are certainly as strong as him as Jedi."

"I'm not a Jedi…"

"No, not yet. But you are nearly there." He waved his hand over the now sorted pile. "These, create the weapon the Jedi, the lightsaber. In the old days, you would have been tasked to do this before being granted the move to Padawan," he sighed. "But we have a…nontraditional arrangement and I confess, I withheld this from you in my own selfishness." Ben slid the cloth closer to her and leaned back heavily in his chair.

"There were many tests for padawans to move into knighthood, and I have slowly watched you pass each of them without knowing. You are ready. _I_ am ready. A lightsaber is a personal weapon, forged by the will of the Jedi who wields it. The crystal that gives its power must be molded, properly into the sword, for a lightsaber is a manifestation of a Jedi's connection to the Force. To successfully create a lightsaber is to become Jedi in your own right." He met her eyes and she saw the sadness of a father in them. "I now give you this final test."

Ariala stared at the pile and shook her head. "I don't understand. If you think I could become him, why train me any further?"

"This test will answer that far better than I could. A saber tells the true heart of Jedi."

Ariala shook her head again and the tears that were lingering in the corners of her eyes rolled down her cheeks. It couldn't be. This was far too much to process.

The story was still running at slow motion through her ears, vivid images playing in her imagination "Y-you said Padme' had three children. Who are the others?"

"That will come later."

"But – "

"You have enough to focus on now, I think?"

She signed and nodded.

"Meditate, center your thoughts on this and you will see that you are not destined for a path of darkness."

"Yes, Master."

* * *

Ariala realized very quickly that there was no shortcut to creating the legendary weapon of the Jedi. She had received only basic instructions from Ben; the crystals were synthetic Kyber crystals 'the heart of a lightsaber', the various wiring and mirrors used technically, the tools for the final touches. The construction she was to accomplish mainly with the Force but there was some hands-on work as well. Outside of the basic overview, she had been left to her own devices to get to work. And given that she had only ever seen a lightsaber a handful of times – a training saber from her childhood and a full-fledged old blue-hued one Ben kept locked in his personal trunk – she barely even knew where to begin.

Nearly a month passed, filled with many failed attempts, her patience thinning at each failure. But she also felt a sense of worth sitting calmly in her favorite patch of emptiness, the bundle tied to her belt. The girl closed her eyes and let the Force surround her. She welcomed the familiar feeling of its swelling power, ever swirling around her. Like a student she approached it, reaching out with her mind's voice, 'help me make my lightsaber'. Suddenly, her mind was flooded with images and feelings she could barely comprehend. Bright flashes of color, cold, distant planets, burning heat, belonging, fear…they overwhelmed her, she could only concentrate enough to wrench her mind free. The knowledge was screaming at her to be recognized. When she finally pulled her consciousness from the onslaught, she felt lost in her own mind and would later swear she had no memory of how she returned home that evening.

The knowledge, however, when – after many silent meditation sessions – she was finally able to sort through it, was helpful. And so, it came to pass that nearly three months after being given the task, the young girl, now nearing her seventeenth birthday, found herself sequestered in a cave, deep in the untamed lands of Tatooine, the pieces of her first saber, hovering about her. For its heart, she chose a crystal of bright amethyst that hummed pleasantly as she fitted it to the blade.

As she worked, eyes closed, senses flung out to the Force, she could not help the slow stream of thoughts buzzing in the back of her mind. This time it had to work. Already she had taken so much time and while Ben had not said anything she could not help but feel she was failing this task. What if, even if she completed it, he turned her away for taking too long? Was there a time frame? How long had it taken the Old Republic Jedi to complete the task? Or maybe, again, she was taking too little time. She would worry her master even further, proving again how similar she was to Anakin. To Vader. Her heart could not help but clench at the thought. In her distraction over the task, she had not taken time to contemplate the reality that she was the daughter – a daughter – of one of the greatest villains of the galaxy. She felt dirty even to think of it as though her entire being were forever defiled by his existence.

Being a Jedi Knight was something she had not even known she wanted. There were no Jedi left, according to Ben, save himself and he was too old and too broken by the last battle to be of any help in a future war. But if she could become one, a knight or even a master, she realized, she could take on Vader, take on Sidious and restore peaceful order. She could help everyone. Aid the rebellion and bring back the republic she heard so much about. But restoring peace meant killing Vader. Killing her father. Was that something she could do? Patricide for the sake of the galaxy? Would the stain on her soul deepen or come clean if she drove the finishing blow?

Her heart raced with the weight of her possible future and she realized the stream that was crystal's presence within the Force had slipped away from her. The humming was a now an angry and violent buzz. She pushed thoughts of Vader aside and returned to her task. The Force continued to swarm around her as she pushed herself toward the crystals wave. It crashed within the Force, frothing to and fro, already tinted with her worry. Slowly, she pushed down her doubt and fear, locking it as far from her current mind as possible, and listened to her own rhythm. The _whoosh-shoo-shoo, whoosh-shoo-shoo_ of her life-force filled her ears. She pushed out again, toward the raging crystal's presence, trying now to imbue it with her calm, her overall self. Slowly, so achingly slow, the crystal listened. Like her, it put aside the confusion and found calm. The buzz turned to the hum and then even that vanished as, finally, the crystal succumbed to her will.

Ariala opened her eyes, squinting into the bright light of the physical world. As her eyes adjusted, she saw the base form of the saber hilt hovering before her. Joy flooded her every inch; the technical work still needed to be completed but finally, she had gotten somewhere.

Letting it fall into her hands, Ariala immediately felt the power coursing through it. It felt like a third arm, and she was suddenly very hesitant to let it go again. After a moment, she pulled the bundle of tools toward her and went to work securing the saber.

* * *

For the most part, Ben seemed content to leave Ariala to the task, to simply watch and offer advice only if asked. But in truth, he worried daily over her progress. Creating a saber with as little knowledge as she had may have been too high a request - in truth, by the time the republic fell, the council had stopped having padawans create their own sabers and instead matched them with cores harmonious to their individual nature - and he felt that it may have been his own, selfish, desire to keep her around a while longer that drove him to test her in such a way. However, he did not want her to fail. Her skills demanded challenges and what she could face as a Padawan, on the outskirts of the galaxy was never going to be enough. Already the old man had decided, should Ariala succeed, he would send her away.

Except there were limited, safe, options for her left and his choices seemed designed only to burden her more. Ben sighed, and Forced his attention outward, seeking peace in the decision he knew he had to make.

* * *

Night had come and gone and the sky was well into dawn by the time Ariala completed her work. The violet light of the blade illuminated the cave and her own satisfied smile. She could have collapsed then and there, exhausted and famished, but she was too eager to see her master's reaction that, despite her stiff joints, she ran the many miles back to Ben's hut.

 _xxxxx_

"Master!" Ariala burst into the hut, chest heaving, eyes scanning the small room. "Master! Master!" She spotted him – rather obviously – lying on the bed, clearly startled by her sudden entrance. "Master! Master wake up!"

"Patience," he muttered. In truth, he had not been sleeping, but her excitement was heavy stone on his mind and he could not so suddenly face her. Slowly, sitting up in the small nook-shaped bed and rubbing 'sleep' from his eyes, he finally looked at his exuberant Padawan. He could already see the glint of the saber in her hand, clutched caring to her chest.

"Master, I've completed it."

Ben nodded and held out his hand. Ariala hesitated then gingerly placed the saber in his grip, releasing only when his fingers closed securely around it.

Immediately, Ben felt her strength in it, squirming around as it recognized that it was not in the proper hands. Not unusual for a saber so freshly created, though its fight was certainly evidence of her deeply loyal personality. It responded to her excitement, too, igniting easily for him though he barely tapped the button. The blade was stable, the circuit closed, and power output hovering in a comfortable mid-range. He tested the higher and lower settings, the balance, and – after standing – maneuvered it through the air. Finally, he retracted the blade and returned it to Ariala's eager hands.

"A fine job, Ari. A fine job indeed."

She let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. "Thank you, master." A pause. "Then – "

Ben cut her off with a stern look.

"Of course," she said hurriedly. "Sorry, master."

Ben sighed, stretched tiredly and glanced out the small window beside the bed. "I think, since we're quite awake, it's time for breakfast." Without waiting for her acquiescence, he shuffled toward the kitchen. Ariala watched, looked once more toward her saber, and sighed, accepting she wasn't getting any answers right now.

Nor did she get any answers that night, nor the next day, or the day beyond that, or the day beyond that. Having given his approval on Ariala's saber fabrication, Ben upped her already intense training regimen, taxing her daily to the point of exhaustion. They sparred in the blazing heat of midday, meditated without break for days, and even after all of that, in the evenings, when the old Jedi would retired, she was instructed to run and exercise, toning her lithe muscles. But still, though she withstood it all without question or complaint, no answer came and Ariala, after a fortnight, struggled to hide her disappointment.

As evening dawned with yet another day of silence, she watched as Ben moved into the hut, leaving her with her routine for the evening. Around her, the Force wavered, her anger and sadness palpable. If Ben noticed – which Ariala doubted he did not – he gave no indication.

Ariala stayed for a moment more, rooted to the spot only because of the battle raging within her. She felt certain she could confront him and demand answers and that with her strength, he would be hard pressed to ignore her. But every part of her knew that was wrong, and besides that, what if the answer wasn't what she wanted? What if he was withholding judgement because he didn't know how to tell her that she had failed? The fear of his rejection choked her fury and Ariala pulled herself away from the hut. It would do no good to press him. She had to be patient.

Without another look back, she turned on her heel and took off at a sprint, curling her knees high to her chest, feeling the muscles stretch and strain as she pushed off against the soft, desert sand. Within mere minutes, the hut was far behind her, the interior lights barely visible in the sunset.

 _xxxxx_

Luke tossed a small stone across the empty stretch of sand and sighed. The day had been long, as he once again said a painful farewell to another friend accepted into the Imperial Academy.

He threw one more stone.

It wasn't just the goodbye that gave him such a sour mood or even the dwindling group he had to call friends. No, what angered him most was that, with each that left, he was certain that _he_ wasn't going anywhere.

Grumbling, he chucked another stone, watching it plunk as dejected as he felt.

His application had been filled out for nearly a year, sitting, gathering dust, as his Uncle Owen manufactured excuse after excuse to keep the teen here.

"Really, how much help could I be that he can't use a droid for?"

Luke threw his final stone and flopped against a small outcropping. The suns were nearly set, only a single rim peeking over the edge of the horizon. The moons, far enough apart to have slightly different cycles, were not yet bright enough to illuminate the sky, and the stars were dim behind the haze created in the swift temperature change. Despite the intensely hot days, Tatooine had mildly cooler nights with gentle breezes that ruffled his hair and plain, linen clothes. He sighed.

Tatooine was all he knew but there wasn't much to know here. He yearned to see something else, anything else but he couldn't see even a glimmer of chance that he would.

Sudden, soft sounds to his left, pulled him from his thoughts and he slipped quickly behind the small rock pile. It was late enough and this area remote enough – when had he wandered so far? - that Jawas, sand people, or some small scurriers could have been the source of the noise. Armed with nothing but his own fists, he didn't want to take the chance. The soft sounds were getting closer and he pinpointed that they were coming from the ravine beside him. He pressed himself lower, desperately trying to blend in. A few small pebbles pressed against his hand and he scooped them up as a means of defense.

Something began to crest the ridge.

Luke waited.

The final edge of the sun dipped and he only just made out that the sounds were gone. Whatever was out there, had stopped.

 _xxxxx_

Ariala looked up as the final sun passed the horizon, long shadows turning into full darkness. The long-night season was just around the corner, so dusk turned to dark quickly. The stars twinkled above and she reached out for them with her mind. As usual, she failed to spread her awareness that far, instead feeling only the familiar pulse of Tatooine. The planet's life came tumbling back to her; the surface as silent and empty-

Her thoughts froze as the Force brushed against a strong presence not too far ahead. Ariala stopped, examining it. It glimmered, unhindered, the Force slipping through and around as though not entirely sure it was part of it. It was no fauna of the planet, the creatures generally small specs in perfect harmony with the Force. This was a person for sure. Her hand floated toward her saber and she drew it. Ben had warned her not to use it carelessly but this seemed like a good reason.

She took a slow step forward, still trying to make sense of the presence, un-ignited saber gripped and ready.

 _xxxxx_

Luke was barely breathing. He could barely see more than a few feet before him and he could only pray that whatever was out there was just as inhibited. He was sure he knew the area decently enough. He could try to run for it and most likely make it back to the farm without getting lost, but depending on just what was out there, moving would only seal his fate. He opted to stay still, desperately praying to be ignored.

"Luke?"

The boy froze. Had he -?

"Luke, is that you?"

The thing was calling his name. A feminine voice. Luke squinted into the dark. He knew that voice. "Ari...?"

Her laughter was all the response he needed. He heard her soft sounds again - now recognizing them as footsteps in the sand - and stood from his hiding place. It wasn't until she was nearly right in front of him that he could make her out. "Ari, what are you doing out here?"

She laughed again, "I was just going to ask you the same thing." She discreetly slid the saber back to her belt and clapped Luke on the shoulder. In truth, friends wouldn't have been the proper term to describe their bond. Living with Ben, she was as much a hermit as her master and didn't interact with the population much.

The two met simply by chance, much like today, on one of Ariala's venture into town for repair parts to their condenser. He helped her locate the older model piece and even haggled the price down to match her low budget. They met a few other times, randomly, over the years and gained enough of a companionship that they were able to speak easily about their troubles.

Luke shrugged at her question and sat down. "Just didn't want to go home, really." He started tossing the pebbles again. "I guess I lost track of the time."

Ariala felt his surprise melt into melancholy and sat beside him. She didn't ask why he was upset. The reason was almost always the same. Instead, she simply waited him out.

After a long while, Luke spoke again. "Do you remember anything about your home planet?" he looked up. "Before you came here?"

Ariala shook her head. "I was too young to form any memories."

Luke sagged in disappointment and Ariala continued with a bit of a chuckle. "I like to imagine it though. The capital city of the - " she trailed off for a moment, looking around. " – the Old Republic." Speaking of the times before the Empire was tantamount to treason if the wrong people heard.

"Everything is shiny," she continued. "And new. There are people everywhere, and the homes almost touch the stars to fit them all. And it's green, not like here, with rain that falls naturally for a whole season. There are trees and flowers and the sun doesn't burn you if you're outside too long." She smiled. It wasn't all imagination. Some from stories Ben told her, others pieces of history she garnered in meditation from the Force.

Luke listened, eyes closed and felt he could almost see it. When she fell silent, the world melted away, and he sighed to let it go. "I wish I could see it one day."

Ariala shook her head. "That's in the heart of the Empire."

"I don't think I'd mind that too much, if it meant getting out of here."

She didn't know what to say that. Her view of the world beyond this planet was much darker than Luke's. Where his uncle hid the real truth of the Empire from him, Ben had been incessantly open.

"It's not that I like the Empire." He added hurriedly after her silence. Ari, he knew, had rather strict views on the ruling power. "I just think there's more opportunity out there. And everybody's leaving. If I wait too long, I'll be too old to join the Academy and then I'll be stuck here. A one-trick Bantha, moisture farming for the rest of my life." He threw another three pebbles, emptying his artillery, and brushed the dust from his hands.

She nodded slowly. "What would you want to do out there?"

"Anything. Maybe work on their star ships –"

"Destroyers."

"It's just a name."

"It's what they're for."

"Well it's not like I'll be pressing the death button!" Luke huffed back.

Ariala recoiled at his Force and restrained from pushing back with her own. She felt, more than realized, that he didn't know what he wanted other than to not be here. "I'm sorry…" She turned toward him. "The Empire took my parents from me, remember? I'm not exactly the right one to talk to about running off to join their militia."

Now it was Luke's turn to pause. "Ari…I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking."

The girl nodded and they fell into awkward silence. After a moment, she spoke. "I want to leave to…"

Luke turned to watch her, Ari's eyes focused on the slowly brightening horizon.

"I want to do something more than take care of an old man in a hut. I think I'm ready too…but Ben…Ben won't tell me anything." She hugged her knees to her chest, quailing the fear that threatened to break free. "I think he plans to keep me here forever."

Luke stayed silent yet again. He didn't know much about Ben, having really only seen the old man in passing or hearing of him through others. To the boy, Ben was an old quirky man, perhaps a little touched in the head. He couldn't even imagine being raised by him. But Ari often spoke of him with a tone of respect, that he didn't dare vocalize his thoughts.

"I'm sure that's not really the case…" he finally said lamely.

Ariala only nodded.

Luke sighed and turned his own attention to the skyline. She was really the one better at cheering people up. Whenever, she spoke, he always got the feeling she just knew something he couldn't quite grasp. He had no idea how to make her feel better, and could only place a comforting hand on her shoulder.

He didn't know though, Ariala realized, that his earnest desire was a calming Force around her. It seeped out of him and embraced the girl's subconscious like a hug. She gave into the feeling and let her fear once again slip away.

"I heard you've been taking those boys for all they're worth at the races," she said suddenly, eager to change the subject. It would have been a waste to his efforts to sink back into their troubles.

Luke gladly took the thread and smirked. "Of course. I'm the best bushpilot on this scrap heap. Even with my racer leaking, it was too easy to take that win."

Ariala laughed and Luke launched into an animated play-by-play of his latest race.

 _xxxxx_

The Force hummed, like a perfectly strummed violin, and Ben let out a slow, weighted sigh.

"I thought I would have had longer…"

The old man sighed again, feeling every bit his age and slowly turned his face toward the sky.

"The future is too clouded now…"

 _xxxxx_

"...so I cut off my power, shut down the afterburners and came in low on Deak's trail," Luke said excitedly, miming his very actions. "I was so close I thought I was going to fry my instruments."

Ariala watched gasping and laughing in perfect timing, the boy's enthusiasm contagious.

"As it was, I busted up the Skyhopper pretty bad. Uncle Owen was pretty upset." Luke sighed and shrugged. "Still, you should have been there... it was fantastic."

"I'm sorry I missed it. But I think your retelling might have been the perfect substitute."

"You really should come to town more often. There's not a lot that happens, but it's gotta be better than sitting out in the middle of nowhere."

Ariala shrugged. "I think I'm pretty used to it. Besides, Ben's stories are almost as entertaining as yours." She added with a laugh. "Speaking of…I really should get back. He doesn't know I left and I'll never hear the end of it."

Luke glanced up to the now fully moonlit sky, "Shoot. Me too. Uncle Owen's gonna be real sore that I made him leave the power on so long."

They stood, brushing sand from their clothes, Ariala already turning back toward the hut.

Luke hovered awkwardly behind her, then, "Ari..?"

She turned with a small "Hmm?"

Luke floundered for a moment. "Would you…walk back with me?" At her confused frown, he hurried on. "I just…wasn't really paying attention when I came out here and well, I'd hate to leave you going on your own too, though I guess you'd have to do that anyway, but maybe you could borrow our blaster?" Ari just stared at the babbling boy and Luke sighed. "Never mind. Get back safe, alright?"

At that, Ariala smiled and quickly closed the gap between them with a swift hug. Instantly, she felt the timeless Force slam into her and flashes of the future bombarded her vision. It passed in a flash, leaving only feelings behind, for she had not mastered the art of foresight, but she knew it for what it was: Luke's future. She had glimpsed only a moment of it. Pulling apart from him, she met his eyes. "Thank you, Luke. I'll be safe. And you, don't worry too much about rushing your leaving. I think you'll find yourself in your own adventure. You just have to let it come to you."

"Wha?"

Ariala shook her head and turned away, already jogging back the way she had come. "Get home before your uncle decides to take all your speeder privileges away!"

Luke watched, still confused by her rather sudden premonition, before heading his own way home.

* * *

Not much to her surprise, Ben was still wide awake when Ariala stepped into the hut. It was well beyond midnight, she was sure, but there he sat, a single lantern illuminating the small room, deep in his own thoughts. He cast a long look toward her as she entered, but otherwise said nothing.

She tested his emotions, probing the Force for information, but the man was skillfully closed off and she had no idea what he was thinking. Though, she reasoned, it was safe to guess.

"Master-"

"I'm not upset by your late return." He cut off.

"…I see."

"How is young Luke?"

"Fine. Same as always."

Ben nodded. "You two are so alike…"

She didn't answer, it was clear he had been musing to himself. Instead, she looked about the room and noticed a travel sack, puffed with supplies, in the corner. It hadn't been there when she left. Ben's eyes followed hers and he let out yet another, low sigh.

"Master…?"

Ben patted the seat beside him and Ariala moved nervously to it.

He held out his hand. "Your saber."

Again, nervously, the girl handed it over. Already she had grown accustomed to it and no longer felt such anxiety to let it from her grasp. Ben took it and closed his eyes, feeling the energy of the crystal within. After a moment, he returned it to her. "I had planned to wait until your birthday was further behind us…but things are progressing beyond my sight."

Ariala didn't speak. Her heart raced with the possibilities of what Ben could be talking about.

"There is nothing more for me to teach you, Ariala." He said steadily. "You are a Jedi, in your right. The galaxy must now become your teacher."

"Master..." The revelation sank into her sluggishly but as it did, her fear was replaced with jubilation and she couldn't help the grin that cut into her face. Despite Ben's somber mood, she jumped up and embraced the old man. "Thank you. Thank you, Master. I promise, I promise I will not let you down."

Ben only nodded and gently separated himself from her. When she was seated again, he continued. "I will arrange transport for you to the Core World planet of Alderaan. I have an old friend there who was loyal to the Old Republic and that I would trust with my life. You will be safe with him – "

"Safe…Alderaan?" she interjected, only just now realizing what Ben was saying. "Master, you're sending me away?"

Ben continued as though he had not heard her. "Alderaan is, by appearances, loyal to the Empire but Senator Organa holds enough power in what remains of the Emperor's farce of a senate to sway things toward the rebellion. You can learn much under him."

"Master, please, this is so sudden."

Ben paused and looked at her. "Yes, it is. But it is time. The Empire has been in control for too long and I can no longer selfishly keep hope to myself." He placed his hand on hers. "I raised you in the Jedi ways with thinking that one day we could help turn the tide. To destroy Vader and Sidious. It is a burden that I did not want you to carry alone, but I am too old. You must see the galaxy for yourself, to strengthen your own resolve."

She shook her head, tears pricking at her eyes. "I cannot leave you…"

"We will forever be bound by the Force, young one. You will not be alone."

The girl could only bury her head into the folds of his robes and cry.

* * *

By the time Ariala woke the next morning, Ben had already returned from Mos Doba. "I've secured a small, allied ship to take you from Mos Eisley day after tomorrow." He handed her a small slip with the rendezvous information. "Memorize this before then, then destroy it."

"Yes, Master."

"And here," he pulled a large bundle from robes. "The climate on Alderaan is much different from here. It is not unpleasant, but you may find it cold."

She took the opened the package, unfurling a gently used navy robe, similar in general design to the one Ben so often wore. It was slightly thicker than his threadbare one, and a little large on her frame, but it concealed her identity which, she gathered, was the point. The extra bulk, she also realized, would also disguise her bag and hopefully stop the small patrols of troopers from questioning her intentions. "Thank you, Master."

"Yes, yes. Come, let's eat before we begin."

"Actually, I was going to find Luke."

"No!" Ben turned on her sharply. "You must tell no one of your plans. Not even Luke."

"I don't understand."

"You are going into the Krayt's den by going to Alderaan. You must be ever vigilant to avoid notice. The Empire must not be able to find you. Even simple word of your departure could fall on wrong ears."

The ferocity of his command was clear and she knew she had no chance of changing his mind. Ariala sagged and nodded with forced acceptance. "Yes, Master."

"Good, now come eat. It will take you two days by foot to reach Mos Eisley so you will have to leave tonight." He hurriedly laid the table with dried fruits, meats and breads, filling a glass with Bantha milk and gesturing for her to join him. "Once you've finished, we will train once more. You must remember to keep your skills honed."

"Yes, Master."

 _xxxxx_

Whether he was asleep or they had just come to an unspoken agreement not to verbally say good bye, come nightfall, Ariala stood on the ridge that lead from her home, alone, pack swung over her cloaked shoulders and heart heavy. She faced outward, toward the general direction of Mos Eisley, but her heart still looked back. Now that it had come to it, she could not imagine her life anywhere else. Still, she did not turn back. These were not only her master's orders, but her own necessary steps as a Jedi Knight. With a deep breath, she took her first steps into the night, probing the Force only once as she walked away; _Goodbye, Master. May the Force be with you._

 _ _xxxxx__

By midday on the second day, Ariala stepped onto her consigned shuttle, silently stowed in a cramped cargo hold. Her pilot was a gentle Twi'lek scarred from a few too many run-ins with the Imperial troops, but, as Ben said, clearly loyal to the rebellion.

"We won't be making a straight shot to Alderaan," the pilot said as her passenger worked to find a comfortable seat among the crates. "We have to keep up the guise of a trade ship, so we'll have two stops between here and there. With the best luck, we'll arrive by morning, Alderaanian time. It will feel like a day's travel."

Ariala nodded. "I trust your judgment captain, but if there is anything I can do, let me know."

"Just stay low and stay quiet and we should get you there safe and sound."

The Jedi nodded again, watched as the captain left and turned her attention to the small room. There was just enough space between the tightly packed cargo for her lie down; her cloak serving as the perfect blanket. As the ship rumbled to life, she pulled the cloak over her shoulders and stuffed her hands in the inner pockets. A light rustle answered the actions, and, a little confused, she pulled out a small sheet of paper hastily folded.

Ben's handwriting, scribbled over the page, read:

 _My dear child,_

 _I am selfish for not daring to say these words to your face, for I feared should you know before you left, I would have given in to your persuasions to stay._

 _You asked me, once, who your siblings are, and I think now is your time to learn._

 _Senator Organa, whom you are now travelling to meet, has taken in your sister. I believe he intended to raise her as his own, so it is quite likely she does not know of her birth parents in any way. You would do well to respect the Senator's wishes and keep your knowledge._

 _Your brother you have already met. I feel I need not speak his name for you to know who I mean. Forgive me for keeping this from you for so long._

Her hands shook as she read over the short sentence again and again, her mind struggling to comprehend what she realized her heart had long ago known.

"Luke…" He was her friend, her confidant, her brother…and now, she thought, she had abandoned him without a word, to possibly never see him again.

Her heart sank at the realization that he would not know what happened and forced her attention back to the letter, seeking solace in its final words.

 _As are you, your brother and sister are quite attuned to the Force, however their paths may not echo yours. This secret is now yours to protect._

 _I beg of you to destroy this before you land and no matter what happens, you must not seek to contact me again._

 _My dear Ariala, I ask your forgiveness of this old man. This may very well be the last time we speak._

Instinctively, she flung her Force-honed senses out, seeking Ben's bright mind, but hyperspace was dragging her away faster than she could search. She felt a brief flicker of the familiar desert planet before, all at once, the ship was too far away and only the cold of space answered her call.

Choked by her own despair, the young Jedi could do little more than sob, suddenly feeling entirely and utterly alone.

 _ **To be continued…**_


	3. Alderaan

**Chapter 2: Alderaan**

"R2, patch into the mission reports for today," said a soft and quiet voice that, obviously, did want to be heard. A loud whistle and beep answered her, and the girl could not help but cringe as she looked around at the room - more specifically at the door.

"Not so loud." The girl reached over and adjusted a knob on the droid's controls and the next beep that issued from it was considerably softer. "Better."

A few seconds passed before the droid beeped again and turned toward the girl as a hologram materialized from one of its lenses.

 _"The mission was successful, senator. We have recruited three more rebel parties on the outer rim territories. But, in the process, we have lost five of our pilots and a negotiator. I fear that the empire may soon begin to see through our tactics. They have already sent patrols to the Cloud City and while it seems they have found nothing, it was a close call. I advise we focus solely on our senate affairs until they no longer look this way."_ The man in the hologram recording bowed before the projection fizzled out.

The young girl sighed heavily, running her fingers through her chocolate locks. Though most of her hair was plaited and twisted atop her head in the royal Alderaannian fashion, the lower section flowed in loose waves placed carefully over her right shoulder. "It's getting worse…"

"Precisely why such transmissions are for the senate's eyes only."

The girl froze and knew, without looking that her father's advisor was frowning at her from the doorway. She sighed and turned with feigned confidence. It faltered at his cold disappointment.

For a long moment, the man said nothing. He watched Leia, carefully waiting for his will to outmatch hers. It was a game he knew he would one day lose. The girl was headstrong and had a strong sense of right and wrong. While her constant intrusion into senate affairs was true problem, her desire to help that drove such actions, was admirable.

Finally, she sighed and crossed her arms with as much regret as one who didn't think they were wrong could muster. "Then I should be on the senate."

"Perhaps in time." Rialo answered. "For now, however, your actions are still condemnable." He took the young girls arm and gently pulled her out of the room making sure that the R2 droid was following.

"I think I'm quite ready now."

"So I see." They turned a corner and Leia balked for a moment. "Perhaps you can convince your father of that _this_ time." The gilded door of the Senator's office slid open before them. "I would start by proving you can take responsibility for your actions; do not try to escape from his punishment."

The pair entered, Leia hovering a step behind, as Bail turned in his chair to greet them. "Need I even guess what she did this time?"

His advisor only chuckled and stepped behind the princess.

Senator Organa sighed. "Leave us." The advisor nodded and turned on his heel disappearing through the doors.

"Leia?" Bail said, calling attention to his daughters wandering gaze.

"Yes, Father?"

"Why do you insist on doing this? The rebellion is not something you should concern yourself with. You have your own classes, your own training, your own duties to the people."

"Yes. Dress-making and cooking and looking pretty while I wave from the balconies." She rounded heated eyes toward him. "I'm your pretty symbol of faux peace while the rest of the galaxy wages a losing war!"

"Is that what you think you're doing?" he asked calmly.

Leia didn't bother to answer. Deflection didn't seem to be working.

"Yes, Leia, you are a symbol. Of the brighter future we are all aware we are fighting for." Bail stood slowly and crossed the path to his daughter. "You are the future leader of Alderaan. The people will look to you to guide them. To keep their spirits lifted in times of sadness, or crisis." He paused with a sigh and placed a hand weighted with his own burdens on her shoulder. Leia started momentarily under the pressure and met her father's eyes.

"But I want to help end this rebellion so they can be truly happy. What help is it to lie to them while I face no struggles or hardships?'

"A leader cannot take on every task themselves. Sometimes the best thing you can do, is be seen. Do you think our people would take solace in their lives if I was constantly darting off to every battle? Risking life, limb, and their comfort just to be on the front lines?"

"But -"

"No," he continued, drawing himself up and leading her to the window. "They need our leadership, here and present to know that everything is alright. To know that no matter what rages on out there, here is safe and home. As Princess of these people, you should take that duty as seriously as you do manipulating my droids." He turned again to look at his properly chastised daughter and smiled. "You do this to help and I admire your focus. Perhaps one day, you will be more ready to have a seat on the senate, but if you cannot learn to see the forest beyond the trees I am afraid you cannot be helpful to anyone."

Leia sighed and pulled her gaze away from the window. She almost wished he would have just yelled. His disappointment was a blade to her heart, fostering icy shame that sped through her.

Gently, Bail embraced his daughter, sighing again. She was destined for great things and so much like her mother than she knew. But he saw where that bravery lead Amidala, the world in which she became embroiled; the way the political system she could not fix broke her into a fragile woman. He could not let that happen to Leia. Not yet. She may not have his blood, but she was his. His to protect from more than the empire.

"I know I cannot keep you from being you," he said after a while. "And I do not plan to. This is not a reward – I will double the guard around you and you will have no leisure activities for the next fortnight – but I will speak to Mon Mothma to include more lessons on government to your curriculum. Show me you can do as I ask, that you can be the Princess you have it within you to become."

* * *

Ariala sat, legs crossed in her hold as the ship made its final approach toward Alderaan. By the will of the Force, the other stops had gone routinely, and the traders had secretly exchanged information and weaponry vital to the rebellion. Now, they crawled the last moments through hyperspace.

Her senses were already flung outward, feeling the brief flickers of planets and life through the galaxy as they sped past, so she knew, even before the shuttle dropped to sublight engines, that they had arrived. The sudden slam of life from the planet was so much more than she had ever experienced on Tatooine that it overwhelmed her meditations and for a few moments, she felt the Force threatened to swallow her up. It was so much stronger here, if only because there was so much more for it to blend with, that the young Jedi had to close herself from it to maintain her sanity. As she did, the door to the cargo hold opened and the captain stepped in.

"We've made it. Come look. Bet you've never seen anything like it."

She had no idea how much that was true.

As they made their way to their bridge, down a thin hall of closet-sized sleeping quarters, lavatories, and a counter area that could be called a kitchen, Ariala could glance peeks at the blue planet from small windows but the overall view from the front of the ship took her breath away.

She had not seen Tatooine as they took off, but even so, she knew the desert planet could never have looked so vibrant. White streaks of clouds lazed over oceans and twisting masses of green. Interspersed between them all, frosty white-capped mountains tried their best to stab the sky. "I've never seen snow…"

The captain chuckled and clapped the girl on the shoulder. "Well you're here now. The northern mountains are a great hiking spot if you get the chance. Just dress warm. Snow is very cold." The captain and her co-pilot laughed and even Ariala allowed herself a small chuckle at her own expense.

"We'll be landing just outside of the capital," the captain continued as her co-pilot communicated with the traffic controller and maneuvered the ship in to land. "There are plenty of transports from there to wherever you plan to go." She pulled a holo-map from her pocket and gestured to a point on the map.

Ariala let her eyes scan it quickly, but the map was solely topographical and provided little detail for her desired locations. She simply nodded at the information and returned her attention to the window.

 _xxxxx_

As the unloading process began for the little ship, Ariala slipped into her cloak and ducked out of the ship, merging easily within the bustle of the space station. At first, she was simply carried along by the flow of foot traffic, but eventually, she wiggled herself free in a large common area and had a chance to take everything in. The great station was built into several closely ranged mountains, platforms and fueling stations jutting out in a neat spiral, the lowest ones still far above the station mezzanine.

The room, large and circular with pathways leading from nearly every side, sported a great stained-glass roof, through which the sun played a rainbow of colors on the marbled floor. That too, she could tell, was carved of the mountain's stones, most likely reused rock from the platform installation. Around the room, shop owners had set up temporary stalls, most selling supplies and parts for the incoming pilots. A few, clearly catering to the travelers, sold trinkets and art or even roasted meat on sticks – samples of the local favorites. The latter called to her, reminiscent of the fried sand skitter sticks so popular in Hutt territory. But she turned away from them, limited on the credits Ben could scrape together for her sudden trip, and instead purchased a sightseeing map from another vendor.

The Palace, it showed, lie at the edge of the capital mountains where the peaks melted into grassland and river. A long distance from the station – most likely for the royal family's safety – and quite more than she could hope to accomplish on foot. Sticking the map disk in her pocket, she turned her attention toward finding a driver and made her way. She directed them not to the palace itself, but to a location a few hours walk from the gates, choosing to avoid suspicion by immediately going to the Royal home. As such, the sun was midway across the sky by the time she reached the towering gates of the Royal Palace. From the ground level, she could barely see the palace proper, the high towers built toward the top of the mountain and far beyond sight.

"Hello, I am C-3PO human-cyborg relations. How may I help you?"

She brought her attention suddenly back to eye-level and was surprised to see a glittering golden droid standing just beyond the ray shield gate. Behind him, carved into the mountain, she noticed an unassuming door through which he must have exited. She turned back to the droid.

"I am here to see Senator Organa."

"Do you have an appointment?"

"No."

"Then I am afraid you will not be able to see the Senator today," the droid answered quickly. "Civilian counsel has already ended. You may return tomorrow between eight and ten in the morning. Senator Organa would be quite happy to hear your complaints, concerns, requests, or recommendations."

Ariala bit her lip. She had nowhere to go nor any funds for a place to stay should she be turned away now. It was a long shot, but -

"Could you pass on a message to him for me?"

"Certainly."

"Tell him the old General is Forcing his hand." It was a hodgepodge of keywords she hoped would ring enough bells in Bail's head to at least pique his curiosity.

The droid nodded as much as his stiff upper body could allow. "Yes ma'am. I shall tell him." He turned away only to realize she had not moved. Cocking his head, 3PO added, "Did you have something else to say?"

"I believe he will make a request for me..."

"But—"

"I will wait." Ariala countered quickly with as much confidence as she could muster. In truth, she had not expected nearly as much security or obstacles. Even speaking to the Hutts was a simple matter of looking mean enough to catch their attention. She prayed again to the Force that the message was enough.

The droid looked around - a shocked expression would have fit his emotionless face perfectly - before walking away constantly looking back at the girl. "Oh my."

He reentered the small door before vanishing from sight within the winding entry hall. Once safely inside, 3PO retrieved a comlink from a console on the wall. "Senator Organa, if I may pass along a message from a visitor?"

The line was silent for a moment before Bail's voice answered back in the affirmative.

"There is a young woman at the gate who says _the old general is forcing your hand_ and desires to wait for your response."

In his office, Bail frowned, immediately certain this was a threat from the empire. Who was the Old General? His mind ran through a list of the most notable Imperial Officers but there were hardly any generals that warranted his attention. Besides, forcing his hand to do what? Per his advisors, the alliance had pulled back on their rebellious activities and no run-ins with the empire had been for more than routine inspections. He turned back to the comlink. "Did she say anything else?"

"No, sir." 3PO answered, sounding as perplexed as the Senator.

Bail stroked his beard and strolled to the window. As a precaution, his office did not face the front of the Palace so no matter how hard he peered down, he was unable to see anything other than the river tumbling by below. If this was a threat, it could also be an attempt on his life. That she had made such a statement without leaving surely meant she wanted entrance to the Palace. But that was not the empire's style. Palpatine preferred to make clear and large examples of those he felt undermined or betrayed him. A lone assassin with thinly veiled threats would most likely be the work of a smaller faction, perhaps aware of his secret ties to the rebellion. Which brought him back to a possible threat.

He could simply turn her away and increase security. The idea that she would just take no for answer seemed slim, again if it was a threat. The possibilities rolled around his head, his years of careful political chess forcing him to take his time.

Downstairs, with each passing silent minute, Ariala felt her nervousness rise. It was possible the droid had simply traversed all the way up the palace to deliver the missive in person, but she worried that she had been too vague and Bail would only throw her out in confusion. She closed her eyes and carefully opened herself to the Force, gritting her teeth as the consciousness of so many pressed against her. She had no idea what Bail felt like in the Force, he was as strange a lifeform as everything else about this planet, but she had to try to find him.

With great focus, she isolated the presence of the flora and fauna, grew familiar enough with their rhythms before pushing them to the back of her mind, effectively silencing them to her notice. Now, she was only aware of the planet itself – far too massive to silence – and the sentient creatures. She narrowed her field of focus to the palace and slowly probed inside. The droids – for she was sure there were at least some present – passed without her knowledge but the milling organic lifeforms rolled about as she searched the palace. Groups, she ignored for she doubted Bail was, in the middle of the day, chatting idly amongst his friends. A few solo sparks caught her attention and she pressed further into the minds before determining who they were not.

It all passed within the span of only a few minutes, but to her timeless form, it could have been ages. With each mind she lived years at fast forward and it was only her skill to push aside what she did not need that kept her from feeling too guilty about the intrusion. Finally, after countless tries, she found him, his mind honed and heavily churning with thought over the strange visitor. _Threat_ and e _mpire_ and _danger_ floated to the surface of his mind and the girl cringed. She really had not thought about that.

Taking a deep breath, she focused her full energies on the aged senator. _Friend, ally, aid,_ she whispered into the Force, letting the possibility of those words work slowly into his mind. She could have done more, could have tried the classic 'Jedi Mind Trick' to bend him to her will, but she could not allow herself to take that route. This was already bad enough. The Force was not for her selfish purposes.

Fortunately, the gentle suggestions were enough and she felt the Bail's mind work over the new ideas. She would not tamper with him beyond that; she withdrew quickly. If he still doubted her, she would try again tomorrow – as much as that was not ideal.

Firmly settled within her own mind, Ariala opened her eyes and, again surprised, saw the door opening again and the golden droid, flanked by a half-dozen guards, reemerged.

"Senator Organa will see you," he said once he reached the gate. "However, he insists you submit to thorough screening by the Royal Guard."

The Jedi looked at the burly group and nodded. This was as good as she could have expected.

"Very well. Please remove your cloak and prepare for a full scan."

The Jedi did as she was told, folding the cloak over her pack and letting the gate system scan her person. Immediately the machine beeped violently as it passed over the saber hitched to her belt and the guards took an offensive stance.

Only the golden droid seemed calm. "We will now remove all suspicious items. Please do not move."

Again, Ariala did as she was told, watching as long metal arms opened from the gate and plucked the saber from her belt.

"Please place your bag and cloak here, "3PO continued, gesturing to a small platform in the gate, as the saber was passed to the guard leader. He twirled it, confused, before shoving it into a waiting boxy droid.

The items were scanned and again, beeps and whirs alerted the guards of a possible weapon, this time her map holodisk and one other she did not recognize, most certainly placed into her bag by Ben. Again, the items were thrust into the boxy droid, the front panel closed, and the contents more vigorously examined. All the while, Ariala waited patiently on the other side of the static gate.

Finally, the droid deemed the items safe and they were returned to the head guard, Ariala's pack and cloak taken by another. The gate was deactivated and Ariala was immediately taken by two more of the guards. They were not overly aggressive and in soft waves she felt that they believed she posed little threat. Each guard guiding her by the arms, the young Jedi was finally lead into the Palace.

The main entry level was rather bare, carved directly into stone and illuminated by glittering white crystals. A long royal blue carpet lined the entire path while occasional photos of the former monarchs hung on the walls. The path wound around, up, and back through the mountain until they finally reached a small lift platform that carried them to the higher levels.

The sun glittered through large picture windows up here and as they moved passed floor after floor, Ariala felt small in the growing grandeur. Suddenly her used robe and flowy clothes seemed too modest for her surroundings. She glanced again at the glittering droid and her distinctly dressed captors. Even they seemed levels above her.

The lift finally stopped in the cooler upper levels of the mountain palace and they small troop stepped off, immediately into the wide conference room. Bail sat there in an oversized chair, guarded by another six of his finest security. Ariala cringed inwardly again.

"Senator Organa," 3PO introduced, shuffling to stand by his side. "I present lady - " he stopped realizing a name was the one thing had not gotten.

"Ariala," she quickly supplied. "Of the outer rim." She added in lieu of her surname. While Bail clearly trusted his staff with his life, she was not so willing to reveal her Master to them.

"Lady Ariala of the outer rim." 3PO finished.

She was gently lead to a seat opposite Bail yet far enough to prevent any sudden attacks and most of her guard fanned around the room. She realized, with a sinking feeling that they had no intention of leaving.

Bail regarded the young girl before him slowly, doubting his own eyes. Her tanned skin and ocean blue eyes were the only things that saved her from being a spitting image of his own daughter. Even the low timbre of her voice was a dead ringer for Leia's.

He was pulled from his thoughts – staring Ariala would have said as she tried to fidget under his unblinking gaze – as the lead guard placed her items on a table before the Senator. He did not look at anything besides the saber.

Carefully, he lifted it from the table and locked eyes with the girl again.

Ariala knew he was debating how she had gotten it. She refused to answer, simply meeting his gaze, calmly.

He ignited the blade and seemed genuinely surprised by the amethyst sword. His guard took the offensive again. "I have not seen one of these…" Bail trailed off and looked again at the girl before him, her words echoing in his mind again. _The old general forces your hand._

 _Kenobi…_

Ariala felt his fear slip away almost all at once as he put two and two together, regarding her with something akin to nostalgic confusion. With a wave of his hand he dismissed his guard and the golden droid, not speaking again until the door slid close behind them.

"Most Jedi wielded blue or green," he said, twisting her amethyst blade in figure eights through the air.

"Those didn't quite appeal to me."

Bail smirked. "Well of course. Appearances matter most importantly in a deadly weapon." He retracted the saber and placed it back on the table moving instead to the holodisk she did not recognize. "And this?"

"A message, I would assume, from my master." She wondered if the contents were more of the same as the note but quickly brushed that from her mind. Ben would not have risked such sensitive information falling into just anyone's hands. "You may view it if you want. I imagine it is for you, after all. He is the one who sent me here."

Bail eyed her again for a second before opening the disk. A red screen leapt from the disk, ancient writing and a flashing counter. Ariala's heart dropped, certain that somehow, someone had slipped a weapon into her bag, but Bail only laughed loudly at the content and responded in what she assumed was the spoken language that matched the text. Instantly the counter stopped and the red screen faded away to reveal a small Ben Kenobi hologram looking up at them.

 _"Senator Organa, it has been many years my friend. I am sorry, that after all this time, I cannot be with you in person. This communication should have come with a friend of mine."_

Eerily, he turned and waved his hand precisely where Ariala currently sat and for a moment she wondered how likely it was that this was not a prerecorded message. She brushed the hologram with her still partially opened mind but felt nothing from the disc or the image within.

" _I have raised her for the past seventeen years, after she was rescued from the empire. She is trained in the ways of the Force but there is only so much one can learn on such an isolated planet. I ask that you take her in, and teach her, as I did._

" _This places a great burden on you, and for that I sincerely ask your forgiveness. She is a skilled fighter and has been gifted with a quick mind. I believe she could be as much a use to you as you can be to her. I ask you to grant this old man this final request._

" _May the force be with you…especially in these dark times."_ Ben bowed and the holographic message ended.

A long, thick silence stretched after the message ended. Bail was still staring at the spot where Ben had been, sadness etching deep lines into his aged face. Ariala resisted the temptation to comfort him.

Her position was not yet confirmed and the wrong step could send her back to Tatooine, tail between her legs. Instead, she waited.

Bail could have cared less at that moment about the girl sitting opposite him. Seventeen years had passed and Obi-Wan had gotten old. Bail ran a hand absently through his own graying beard. They had both gotten old. He had not heard from the Jedi since that day, each taking their own, secret transport to whatever reaches of the galaxy they deemed best. Yes, he knew where the Jedi had gone to and why but time could have easily stolen him away. To see him now, even in the little recorded message, made him remember what he had spent so many long years fighting to restore. Tiredly, he lifted his eyes to the girl and once again took her in.

Now that he looked closer, he saw small differences from his own daughter; Ariala had a rounder face, slightly protruding ears, and only mildly wider nostrils. And of course the blue eyes that watched him with barely concealed worry. Great intelligence mingled with her youth, and he saw the two swirl in her eyes, oh so similar to His.

Bail immediately shook that thought from his head. This was not Anakin's child. He had the girl, _his_ girl, and Obi-Wan had very clearly taken a boy. And there were only two – he witnessed that himself.

Then how had Obi-Wan come to raise a second child looking so much like them?

Of course, his mind quickly reasoned, the Jedi had always been of a kind heart and didn't the recording say he rescued her from the empire? Perhaps she was just that – an unfortunate orphan the retired Jedi felt was strong enough to take on the Jedi ways. Bail scoffed at the idea but it settled his internal discomfort enough that he clung to it. He looked back to the disc and sighed. If Obi-Wan was taking these many risks…

"I suppose I would be the bad guy now to turn you away," he said aloud, leaning back in the chair.

Ariala chose to again remain silent.

"He's asking an awful lot of me to shelter you. The empire is already angry with me but he sends a Jedi to my doorstep." Again he laughed mirthlessly. "Always the Jedi way; planning for something so far ahead that the rest of can't see." He sighed. "Alright. Let's start by finding you something to do."

The girl visibly unwound and released the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. "I have some farming and cooking skills," she offered. "And decent skills with wildlife care."

Bail shook his head. "That seems a waste of your real skills, now doesn't it?"

Ariala shrugged.

"It's been a while since I've had even a Padawan watching my back." His fingers tapped a console in the large chair and almost immediately the guard leader strolled into the room. "Dardan, how would you like a new recruit for your security team?"

The guard looked at Ariala, and back to his senator, clear disbelief on his face. However, he said "I can whip anyone into top shape."

Bail chuckled. "You might find she's more than ready for the task." He turned back to the girl. "Dardan is the head of my entire security team, responsible for guarding every life - droid and human – within and around the palace. Go with him and earn your keep."

"Yes, sir," both she and Dardan responded. The guard turned to her once more, jerking his head toward the door. "Let's go."

Ariala stood, hurriedly gathered the items from the table – under both of their watchful eyes – and followed the man from the room.

Dardan stalked ahead with a long stride the shorter woman struggled to match, especially as she took a better look at the glamour of the palace. The stone walls glittered with natural mineral veins and all lighting was provided either by the sun through the massive triple paned windows or by more of the softly glowing crystals she had seen in the entryway. The floor was marbled much like the space station's, and the same blue carpet from the entryway traversed seamlessly through every passage. The attendants bustling wore gentle, natural shades, and most were donned in dazzling white robes or gowns. It would have been blinding had it not blended so well with the natural landscape.

In contrast, her tan tunic and leggings were woefully out of place. She hurried after Dardan, almost eager to be out of sight. "Will I be getting a uniform like yours?" She asked as she fell in awkward step beside him. Just reaching his shoulder, she felt like a child next to him.

Dardan glanced over and shook his head. "This uniform is for the family's protective unit, one of the highest levels of our rank. You'll be starting with the general group." He pointed to a motionless soldier, guarding an unmarked door, that seemed to blend in with the walls. He wore a swirled ivory one-piece outfit, with slightly flared legs stuffed into brown boots. A matching belt broke the monotony of the one-piece and a high collared, half cape flowed down his back. The outfit was practical, non-descript, and a pale comparison to the sleek pleated robes and trousers Dardan wore, but Ariala did not complain. She nodded and if he had expected her to seem upset, the slight smile on her face came as his own disappointment.

"The newest graduates have been at their tasks for a few months now, so you'll have to learn quick to catch up with them." Dardan watched her as they took the stairs down several flights and down another corridor. Again, the girl only nodded. "They've trained years to be even accepted and I don't want you thinking you are somehow equal to them just because you have the senator's blessing."

"Of course."

He scowled. "If you fall behind in any way, I won't hold back punishment."

"As I would expect." She looked up at him as they reached the main security office. "I will do all within my power to match the excellent skill of your guards."

The guard rolled his eyes and decided she was clearly not taking this seriously. Most likely she was just some other senator's illegitimate child in need of straightening out but too high in rank to get sent to the Academy. He pushed open the door and watched her enter unprompted. He would squeeze her and she'd break or be gone in less than a month.

* * *

The so-called backbreaking training Dardan had organized was a laser-focused crash course on what the other cadets learned over years. Of course, he personally trained her, starting the mornings with lessons on the etiquette and decorum of the palace. In less than a week she had it perfectly memorized. The layout of the winding, split-leveled palace she knew in three days, and the names, faces, and quirks of the sprawling royal family and Imperial Senate she knew within two.

In the evenings she trained her body, working with their weapon of choice, a blaster sword that combined the close-range effectiveness of a sarrassian iron blade with the deadly accuracy of a blaster, perfecting her hand-to-hand combat, and building her reflexes.

The Force, of course, aided her in the progress, but Dardan had no idea of her skills and struggled to hide his frustration at his increasingly growing impression of her. By the end of her first month, Ariala was allowed to join Palace Division squad 286.

A fancy name, but frankly, palace division squads were cadet ranked, the immediate next step after training completion. They did not do much around the palace, mainly guarding already locked doors, patrolling for anything unusual, aiding with the other areas as needed, and filling out larger convoys for the royal family's trips away from the palace. The entire exhibit was more of a show, the groups of at least six guards marching in unison through the halls, stopping, looking around and continuing off, but she did not complain.

The cadets were friendly and the time around the formal schedule of the palace gave her structure in the otherwise unfamiliar setting. The young Jedi still struggled to fully embrace the massive living Force swimming through Alderaan, and welcomed something more familiar to ease her into things.

For the sake of teambuilding, the squads were 'recommended' to spend on and off shift time together. They were assigned team quarters, identical shifts, a singular meal time, and – the part the Jedi disliked most – a buddy system for their off time. Her partner, Antsul was closest to her in age being only two years older, with a playfully braggadocios personality that reminded a little too much of Luke. She supposed she could have had it worse, but through no fault of his, Ariala felt her heart breaking every time he flashed a lopsided grin. His constant presence also made it nearly impossible to lose herself in mediation, the boy seeming to quite dislike long silences. Only in the dark of night was she able to calm her roiling thoughts.

She understood the necessity of it, of course. Up until their assignment most of the squad members had never seen each other or interacted. The teams were constructed by Dardan but they were expected to work perfectly in sync.

Each member of her squadron had a story, some greater reason why they chose to join the guard. Most of her squad, she learned through one of their late night conversations, joined the guard after failing initial acceptance into the Academy. Whether for finances, experience, or just settling, they took the smaller, local position as a compromise. Corseam, the captain of their group, planned to reapply for the next semester and was confident at his being accepted. Tyrald, his second, was in line for promotion if the captain made it in and already treated the others as though he ran the ship. Is rather cocky attitude rubbed Ariala the wrong way at times, but she tolerated the flaw in light of his impressive skill in combat training.

Despite her larger aspirations, Ariala found herself in no rush to move on from the contingent, feeling for the first time in her almost eighteen years, that she was nothing more than anyone else.

* * *

The grand hall glowed with the soft blue of two dozen holographic bodies, each intently staring forward at the young woman at the podium. A display flashed behind her, in time with her clearly rehearsed speech, her voice echoing over the technically empty room.

Leia looked out her faux audience, the familiar stoic faces of this council meeting frozen in cold silence.

Her recent classes on legislation and government had progressed to this, simulated council meetings based on previously resolved matters. This particular assignment covered the debate of Alderaan serving as neutral territory between the separatists and republic during the Clone Wars. The final decision had been to remain fervently loyal to the republic, rejecting any, and all, interaction with the fractioned group.

Leia had chosen to persuade them to go the opposite route.

"...must be made to feel that their position matter to the republic!" She brought her opened palm down hard on the podium. "Were they not once our allies? Trade partners or friends? Should we so easily turn the idea of peace away just because we disagree with their methods? They believe the republic to be corrupt – as a member of the Senate, if Alderaan opened herself to hear their worries, we can, together, offer the chance to change!"

The slide behind her shifted again, a painful scene of a recent battle. Clone trooper, droid, and Umbaran corpses littered the open field and behind them, native flora burned, painting the sky red.

"General Grieves and Count Dooku may have more sinister goals, and their violent tactics are most definitely not to be underestimated or tolerated, but how many lives have been forced into their service simply because the republic has not been there to save them? The council, the true council behind this movement, seeks only independence. I implore you to see beyond the shadows that seek to control them and see the people trapped in the middle.

"Alderaan can become a beacon to stop this war. Please, vote for temporary neutrality so we can put an end to the massacre."

She fell silent and the holograms sprang to life, muttering and shouting gibberish over each other, while a score card rapidly tallied her grade on the screen. The princess refused to watch the scrolling numbers until they came to a stop. The council holograms faded as the program ended, leaving only her, the instructor, and the grade to fill the room. Leia turned slowly to the 29/38 emblazoned on the screen.

"Congratulations princess," came the voice of her tutor, a middle-aged woman sitting in the back of the room. "Based on the records that supplied the senate personalities, you would have swayed the vote to your favor." She stood and slowly crossed the room. "Would such a move have been the right decision is something we cannot synthesize, but your research and persuasion were enough to make it happen." She smiled as she closed the gap between the two of them. "I believe your father would be proud. It seems you have his gift of heart."

Leia couldn't help the huge smile on her face. This was only her third success since she started this curriculum but each win was a step closer to really being a force to help her people.

As though reading her mind, Mothma gently took Leia's hand. "I will pass this along to your father, princess, and see if he has plans to accelerate your path. I think you could benefit from more direct training."

Leia forced her cheering heart to be calm and nodded as calmly as she was able. "I would appreciate that."

* * *

"The final formation, sir." Dardan passed the thin tablet across Bail's desk, small dots representing his squads for the upcoming Green Celebration. The annual 3-day celebration started with a traditional parade in which the entire Royal Family took to the streets to interact with the people.

Though the event was generally quite safe – as it was not at all rare to see the Alderaanian rulers out and about on any given day – but with escalated tensions in the galaxy and the possibility that Alderaan was under a rebellion-focused microscope, Dardan and Bail were triply concerned with the possibility of attack. The Green Celebration drew visitors from several surrounding planets and the increased population was ideal for mischief.

Bail ran his eyes over the tablet, tapping the blinking dots and flipping the images around to get the full view.

Three squads took position along each side of the royal caravan, two each at the front and back, three each further ahead and behind, while the private force, rode the caravan – enough to protect each family member. Bail frowned at the crowded rig and shook his head.

"We need to project an image of confidence. Having us so crowded in by security will only make the people afraid."

"I will not take the chance that you can be harmed, sir."

"Just you, then. Put the other forces at the front and back." He made the quick changes and showed his head of security. Begrudgingly, Dardan accepted.

"Good." Bail turned his attention to the tablet again. "You have Corseam's squad on the rear guard?"

Dardan nodded. "Corseam has run the rear for the past two years and his team would be a good fit for crowd control."

"Move them with Kasiri's squad on the west side."

"Sir, that puts them in the direct line of a blaster attack," Dardan blustered, barely able to remain respectful. "They're completely untested in combat - "

"Move them."

Dardan drew himself up, face stiff. "I'm afraid I can't, sir. They are too inexperienced for such a vital position. I will not put the family at further risk."

Bail looked up, sighed and met his guard's eyes. "I have great faith in your teaching. I'm sure they will be fine."

"With all due respect, sir, I highly disagree. Corseam and his second are well trained but rest have only been out of basic training for less than three months. If not for the empire drafting from my finer picks, they would not be on this assignment at all." He threw up his hands, frustration rumbling through him. "They haven't even been part of a royal contingent yet!"

The Senator shook his head. Under normal circumstances his captain would have been more than correct and if he knew what the Senator did, perhaps his mind would change as well. But that was not his information to share. That Ariala was, in all respect, a Jedi, was still a secret to his staff. However, if she was anything like the young Commander Tano he served with so long ago, he was certain she was better utilized toward the front lines.

"I know you mean well, but this is a direct order, captain."

For a minute, it seemed Dardan was going to again protest, but his unbending loyalty won out and the man said stiffly, "Yes, sir."

 _xxxxx_

The walls of the training center seemed to rumble under the agitating churn of the Force. Ariala paused in her blaster training, her target block already blackened from previous shots, and glanced toward the door. Somewhere on the other side, she felt Dardan's anger pulsing.

"You lose your nerve, rookie?"

The deep voice pulled her attention back and she turned toward one of the other cadets, a towering Iktotchi from a different squad. His young horns curved only to his chin, not yet the heavy tusks of his race. He was in line beside her, her unofficial competition, and was clearly annoyed at her sudden pause.

She scoffed and turned back to the board. "I was only getting bored of beating you." She raised the blaster sword and fired a clean three shots to the quickly darting targets.

The Iktotchi smirked and moved to tackle his own course, shot suddenly stuttering off to the side as Dardan burst into the room, the sliding door nearly breaking through the wall as he pushed it open impatiently. The room fell into abrupt, tense silence as he scanned over the crowd. "Corseam!"

The watchful leader bounded over, skidding to a halt in front of the captain.

"You and your team, come with me." Dardan did not wait, turning on his heel and storming from the room. Without waiting to be rounded up, 268 fell into formation and followed, trying desperately not to seem nervous.

Ariala watched from her position in the center of the group. "Wonder what's gotten under his skin…" Antsul prodded her with his elbow, hissing for quiet. She met his wide eyes and shrugged, but remained quiet as he marched them to his office and filed them inside.

Immediately, Corseam parted himself from the group, stepping forward as shield and sword for whatever was about to happen.

Dardan regarded them, eyes lingering on the two youngest, before scowling and turning away. "By Senator Organa's _request,"_ the way he stressed the word, Ariala was sure he had been ordered, "you are to take the right center flank of the parade route tomorrow." Dardan wheeled around. "Do _not_ think you can slack off!"

"Yes, sir!" They answered in unison.

"This goes against everything I believe and I will not have you greenbacks putting our entire nation in jeopardy just because some of you," he glared pointedly at the Jedi, "have gained some favor with the Senator." He turned on Corseam, jabbing a finger in the leader's chest. "If even a single insect breaks through your team, you won't be around long enough to accept that Academy position. Now get out."

All too eager to oblige, the squad slipped out of the office exchanging terrified and confused glances. Antsul opened his mouth but Violles, the only other girl on the squad, shook her head and they retired to their quarters in silence.

 _xxxxx_

Despite the heavy shielding of the palace, the semi-removed location, and high altitude, Leia and her maidens could still hear the rambunctious churning as the pre-Celebration parties began in the streets.

The princess could not stop grinning as her maids fussed about her, smoothing near invisible wrinkles from her elaborate dress, powdering her porcelain skin, and twisting her chocolate locks into a maze of braids she knew she'd later struggle to undo. All of the fuss only heightened her excitement. The Celebration was the greatest festival of the year! How could she not get swept up in it?

Outside, fireworks blasted non-stop, over two dozen bands and musicians played to growing crowds, music disjointed as it failed to blend into the shop owner's own amplifiers blaring the latest hits. Shuttles twisted dust funnels from above as they orbited, waiting to land, while twice as many transports, speeders, and pack animals squeezed through the packed streets.

She knew that the best vendors were already lining the streets and some of her favorite foods were being coated with the final layer of sweet sauce. The energy was infectious and Leia practically vibrated impatiently in her seat as she was made ready.

"You must be still, Princess," the head handmaiden chided with a smile. "It will not be worth your father's scolding if everything is not right."

"Oh, please hurry. I wanted to get a look at everything before the parade started. It will be impossible to get away after."

"I will pretend I didn't hear that."

Leia smirked and nodded gently. "Yes of course. Hear what?"

The handmaiden returned the smile. "Of course." She stepped back with her team and allowed the princess to stand. "Come along, then."

 _xxxxx_

His red eyes stared forward silently as the crowd around jostled and shuffled him, vying for a better position. The caravan was still at the edge of eyesight, pausing yet again for the family to pass small favors and kind words to their subjects. Senator Organa stood at the head of the decorated hover platform, his flowing, embroidered, navy robes adding length to his tall figure. At his right, his wife, Queen Breha dressed in matching hues, waved serenely too the crowds, focusing attention to the mother and women in the crowd. She took their hands, kissed their cheeks, and exuded perfect regal strength. He scoffed. It was never real.

He let his eyes flow to the other side of the rig and smiled; the little princess. She hadn't inherited her parent's height, so even at eighteen she seemed dwarfed by their stature. The lack of height she made up for in exuberance. It was because of her the ride stopped so frequently, as she leaned far over her security detail to toss the small items deep into the crowd, often unsettling the sensitive rotators. She seemed unperturbed by it, gladly taking a tray of sweets from a citizen and passing them amongst her family.

Slowly, the parade continued, edging toward his position. The crowd redoubled their efforts to get closer, effectively hiding the small, single-shot blaster he slipped from his sleeve. _I better get double for dealing with this rabble._

He pushed forward with little regard for the group around him, stopping just behind a cheering family and leveled the blaster carefully.

The cold wave of disruption in the Force ran over Ariala, her eyes suddenly darting around. "Something's wrong…" If her squadmates heard her, they made no sign, but she could feel it. The Force was trying to warn her. Malice…she felt greed and hungry intent bubble up between harmonious jubilation. Intense focus…

 _Princess_.

"Leia."

The blaster made barely a sound over the din of the crowd, but the red beam darted toward them. In one swift movement, the Jedi flung aside her blaster, leapt to the caravan and countered the shot, amethyst blade humming in her hands. "Stay down!"

The crowd erupted in panic as the blaster bolt ricocheted over their head and realization of the attempt swept through them. The platform drew to an immediate stop; Dardan pressed the family to their bellies while the contingent aimed wildly into the crowd for the assassin. Only Ariala's quick reflexes made out the retreating figure already on the other side of the crowd. "There!" She pointed, flipping from the perch.

"No!" Bail snagged her half cape and hauled her back. "Stay here. Protect my family."

"The assassin - "

"Let them take care of it." Already the squad captains had peeled away, closing in like a pincer around the lone shooter.

Ariala nodded, her heart pounding with adrenaline. She could still feel the Force rumbling with the displeasure.

"Guards!" Dardan's call pulled her focus. "Form up! Protect the family. Maneuver 34!"

 _ **To be continued….**_


	4. Leia

**Chapter 3: Leia**

"This has got to be the work of the empire!"

"They have never targeted us like this before! It was a lone attacker, probably seeking favor with the empire."

"It was a skilled shooter! The blaster wasn't made to fire more than once! He knew what he was doing. If not for the Jedi, the princess would be dead!"

Bail huffed silently as the emergency council raged before him. Nervous councilors shouted repeatedly about the possibility of more attempts, or tried to twist this to fit the empire's schemes. Their raised voices grated his ears and he massaged his tired eyes.

From his position just behind the senator, Dardan recognized the look of annoyance. The senator's patience was near to running out. The long day and emotional turmoil was leaving clear stress on both Organas, Breha having secluded herself by Leia's side. The young princess still seemed so shaken by the close call.

 _If not for her…_

Dardan glanced toward the young girl at the other side of Bail's forces. The senator had refused to let her leave with the other cadets on patrol, instead insisting she be party to the emergency council meeting. She flanked Bail on the opposite side, silent and stoic, taking in the room with still eyes. The saber she had hidden earlier now swung in clear sight on her belt. So, she was a Jedi…a legendary warrior from the old republic that had magical powers. Were they all so young?

He turned his attention back to the Senator. Bail had obviously known. Was she a secret member of the alliance? Their trump card against Vader? If so, why was she playing cadet in the palace?

Dardan shook his head. Politics were not his wheelhouse. He focused his attention back to Bail as the senator jumped to his feet, finally bellowing "Enough!"

The raucous collapsed into silence.

"This wasn't the empire."

The council bubbled to erupt again and Bail hurried to continue.

"At least not directly." he sighed and pulled a stack of holo-flyers from his desk, each one showing some variation of the rebellion as traitors and terrorists. Some advertised bounties; others spelled elaborate tales of lives lost in the battle. "The empire has no solid proof that Alderaan supports the alliance, so they cannot target us directly, but they have been doing a good job making the rest of the galaxy hate us."

Ariala glanced over them and had to admit, some were rather convincing. To the average citizen, one not under the thumb Palpatine's dark rule, they could be very persuasive.

"He's riling the people against us; using their fear to root us out. I'm certain this assassin is the product of these." he flung the pile into the center of the room angrily.

"But to go after the princess..." another member started."What is the target there?"

"Kill Bail and he'd be a martyr, Camloui" answered Alfren from the other side of the room. "Break him and the Senator could be persuaded to join the empire."

"Not only that, but the Princess isn't a political target; a single shooter, a tragic death. We'd have no ability to retaliate."

The council jumped into conversation again, Bail falling to silence as he weighed the realizations. His daughter...his daughter...they almost took his daughter! Hot tears pricked at his eyes, his vision bleeding red. He didn't need to be here…Leia…he needed to be with Leia.

"Councilors..." his voice cut through the din again. "We have been at this for hours. I am tired, my family is tired. For now, the assassin has been confirmed dead and every sign points to him working alone. We need time to gather our thoughts, contact our scouts, and come up with a plan." He pushed away from the table.

"Your families have all been relocated to the safe houses and you are welcome to stay here for the night. Please, let us reconvene when we have calmer minds."

The councilors muttered their agreement, giving various well wishes as they exited the room.

Suddenly alone with only his guards, Bail exhaled again, tiredly falling back into his seat. Energy drained from him as though his very soul was being sucked into a black hole. From his left, he felt Dardan's eyes nearly boring a hole through his head.

"It was hardly necessary for you to know, captain." Bail lowered his hand, only just glimpsing the guard hurriedly looking away. "She was sent to me for her protection."

Dardan glanced again at the girl, starting when his eyes met hers. She was watching him …afraid? Yes, that was fear in her blue eyes, fear and something else…something threatening.

"You understand that her presence must be a closely guarded secret?" Bail was speaking again. Dardan nodded slowly. He had been only a boy when word of the Jedi Purge swept through the galaxy but he had not forgotten the surgical precision of the emperor's order.

"Of course, sir." He paused, "But sir…what about everyone else? I can wrangle the royal guard to silence, but the spectators…there were over a hundred people in that area alone that would have seen her. What should we do about them?"

The headache that had been building in Bail's temples snapped behind his eyes at the question. Valid as it was, it was a stress he was not sure he could currently handle. "That…will be tomorrow's problem."

"If I may offer a suggestion?" Ariala spoke gently, her distant gaze still focused on something beyond the room.

Bail nodded.

"Spread a rumor that is easier to swallow." She refocused her eyes on Dardan. "The Royal Guard already use blades, it would not be such a stretch to say that a new version is in production."

"There is nothing exciting about a new guard tool…" Bail contemplated. "Before the Celebration is over, they will most likely forget…" Bail rounded on his captain, a glimmer of fiery hope in his otherwise tired eyes. "I want you to supervise that. There are plenty of gossips on the palace staff. Shouldn't be too hard to get that going."

"Yes, sir."

Bail nodded, turning to his right. "Ariala," she stepped forward. "Thank you, for saving my daughter."

She said nothing, inclining her head to accept his gratitude.

"I would like you to take the task on as a permanent position."

"Senator!"

"Quiet, Dardan. Your forces are not being demoted." Bail locked his attention to Ariala again and she felt his burdened heart reach out to her. "Leia is my life. I thought she was safe from this kind of thing at least for a little while longer…I need to know she will be protected. I won't order you to do it, simply ask. Please, transfer to Leia's personal security division."

The young Jedi considered him for a moment, eyes flickering to Dardan, before falling respectfully to one knee. "I will protect her with my life, Senator."

* * *

She could hear their voices even before she reached the door and was nearly tackled to the ground as she entered, Antsul leaping excitedly over to greet her.

"You're really a Jedi?"

"Come on, I told you there's no way."

"But you saw that lightsaber!"

"I bet she stole it."

The cadets were nearly shouting over each other and the small room seemed all too similar to the council chambers Ariala just left. She pulled herself from Antsul grip with a gentle smile.

"Ari, come on Just tell us. Is it true?"

"I said she's not." Tyrald huffed grumpily in the corner.

The rest of the room watched her with bated breath. Bail's words – and Ben's – echoed in her mind, and she shook her head. "I'm not."

She felt, rather than saw, Antsul deflate.

Tyrald scoffed. "Hmph. Told you."

"But what about the lightsaber?" Violles asked from the corner. While they hadn't interacted much one-on-one, Ariala and the girl clicked a bit more than either did with the boys on the squad. There was a wave of loneliness and betrayal emanating from her as she watched Ariala.

The Jedi turned away, pressing the Force into silence. "I bought it."

The silence following her answer was enough to tell they didn't believe her. She shrugged. "Look, a bunch of trash washes up in the outer rim. It looked pretty cool so I paid a month's worth of credits for it from some skeevy trader that came by once a moon cycle." She turned to her own bed and started pulling things together. "Thing didn't even work when I first got it."

More tense silence followed her words and she did not need the Force to know they were upset. A Jedi was a symbol of hope, of the old times, and she was tearing that hope away. But it was for their protection. If they hated her…she forced that thought aside and focused instead on stuffing her belongings into her sack.

Tyrald finally broke the silence. "Would have been cool if you were, though. I heard Jedi could control things with their minds and see the future."

"Yeah…"Anstul sighed. "That could have been real handy. We'd know when the commander signed us up for mess duty."

The squad chuckled weakly.

Violles softly chimed in. "I heard Vader is a Jedi…"

Ariala felt her heart stop, blood running cold. "That's not true."

"How do you know?"

Ariala couldn't bring herself to turn around, but she answered with as much confidence as she could muster. "The Jedi are the good guys. And Vader is clearly not a good guy."

"But he's invincible…and magic."

"They say he can read your mind and make you do whatever he wants," Antsul added.

"They used to call that a Jedi Mind Trick." Tyrald again. Ariala wasn't sure what his tone meant.

"He is _not_ a Jedi," Ariala knew her response was sharper than necessary. Her own confusion, fear, and hatred mixed with her words. "Vader is evil incarnate. A destroyer. Nothing about him is good or happy and if the old Jedi were still here, you saying that would be an insult to their entire order!" She was glad she was not facing them. She was shaking, tears threatened to spill out. She needed to go.

Ariala swung her pack over her shoulder and stepped toward the door.

"Ari, wait." It was Antsul. He sounded so much like Luke. Her heart clenched but she stopped. She still couldn't turn around. "We're sorry. You don't have to leave."

The others chimed in their apologies. She heard even Tyrald's awkward "yeah, sorry".

"We're not saying the Jedi are bad…"

She shook her head. "It's not that." Breathing deeply, she forced herself to face them. They deserved a proper goodbye. "Senator Organa moved me to Private Division." The gasps were sign enough. "Squad sixteen."

"You got a promotion?!"

She cringed. Of course, Tyrald would take it worse.

"Mother of Moons that is that biggest pile of Bantha fodder I've ever heard!" Tyrald fumed. "You've been here less than half my tenure and _you_ get a promotion cuz you're the laserbrain who got lucky?!" He stalked over to her, barely restrained by Antsul's outstretched arm.

"That's enou-"

"Oh shut up, dirtball. Any one of us could have been in the same position. But do you think we would be getting a promotion?" he shoved his finger at her. "No. Because Dardan's been right all along. You got in here by sucking up to the senator and now you just leapfrog over everyone working harder than you?!" He spit at her feet and drew himself him. "Maybe you are a Jedi after all. _Just like Vader_."

"That's over the line!" "Blast it, Tyrald!"

Ariala barely heard her squad's bickering, his last words ringing in her ears. The Force lashed violently within her. Like Vader…like Vader?! She felt it, the part of his life in the stream of the Force and closed her finger around it. She could so easily be like Vader.

 _I see in you much of your father – and much of your mother – but I fear you could sway too easily toward one._

Ben's voice cut through the anger and she dropped the thread. What had she been about to do…?

Without another word, she turned and stormed from the room.

* * *

Breha's soft voice was all that could be heard in the otherwise silent room, the smooth sounds of the old lullaby filling her with comfort as she watched Leia. The princess finally slept, the adrenaline from the morning fading into complete exhaustion. Leia's young face was creased with thin stress-lines, streaks of tears still dried to her cheeks. The same streaks dried on Breha's face as well.

That morning's attack played on a loop in her mind and with each repetition she felt her heart would stop. In painful slow motion she saw the glinting, red, blaster bolt break from the crowd, felt the warning freeze in her throat…then the cadet was there, Leia pushed back as the guard had jumped up, lightsaber singing as it whipped through the air and beat away the deadly projectile. Breha reached, fearfully, for her daughter but Leia was unharmed, though quite shaken. She had seen it too, the flare that would have ended her life. Her brown eyes were wide, she pressed herself to the floor of the float, calling for her mother's hand.

The terror in her daughter's voice was even more heartbreaking than the attempt. Leia was always a strong spirit. Breha had not heard her scream so frightfully since she was but a babe plagued by nightmares.

The queen felt her heart shudder again, fresh tears breaking her voice, and she pulled her sleeping daughter into a tight embrace. "I'm sorry, my child. I promised to keep you safe…I failed."

"She still lives, Breha." The queen did not look up. Though she had not heard the door open, the voice of her husband was welcome. "We did not fail her."

Bail joined her on the bed and she felt his arms wrap around them both. Leia squirmed sleepily in the warmth and they parted if only to let her recapture peaceful rest.

Only now did the queen take in her husband. He fared no better than the rest of his family, overtiredness drawing down his face. She stood and gestured him to follow, moving away from the bed. The sentry posted at each corner of the room shifted for their privacy.

"What does the council say?"

Bail shook his head. "They could barely agree on anything. They are so afraid."

"Will they do nothing? Leia's life - " Her maternal anger soared.

"I will not allow that to happen, my love." He pulled her close. "But Leia is still with us, her would-be killer dead. I must think outside of my own anger. To retaliate blindly would endanger us all."

The warmth of Bail's embrace was too comforting to Breha's battered heart. She felt herself melt weakly into him. "I cannot lose her, Bail. I can't…we waited for her so long."

"I know, my love." Bail felt his own strength melting. "I know. I will do everything in my power to keep her safe."

* * *

"My Lady, your father has requested you forgo today's council meeting."

"No, Isamira," Leia chided with resolve she hardly felt. Despite how much her handmaiden claimed she slept since yesterday, Leia felt heavy and slow. But she had only just been allowed to sit-in on council meetings and this recent attack was not going to chase her away. "I'm going."

"Princess, please - "

"I have made up my mind."

Isamira sighed. "At least take your guard. If I let you go unprotected, your father will kill me."

"It's just across the courtyard!" Leia rounded on her, but the plaintive expression on the maid's face broke her. "Fine, Isa. Fine. Call them quickly."

Isamira beamed. "It's hardly a matter of _calling_ them…" she tapped the console beside the door, a full contingent of Private Division guards revealed just outside.

Leia cringed at the over twenty personnel that would add to her already half-dozen strong entourage, but made no vocal complaints, simply shaking her head as she moved to join them. The crowd parted as she stepped in, closing before she could take the head of the line. "Is this really necessary?" The confined movement was just like yesterday. Her paranoia spiked and she hated it.

"Your father's orders, your highness." The guard directly to her left answered. She recognized him, and most of them really, from the reserves of the Division used to expand ranks when dignitaries visited.

"Oh, alright."

Toward the front of the group, blocked from the princess's sight by the taller sentinels, Ariala listened. With the exception of yesterday, she had not been near the Princess before, or as it turned out, truly looked upon her face. Her sister's face.

She had confirmed from the other guards that Bail and Breha had no other children. Leia was her sister. And fate felt all the crueler.

She pushed aside her thoughts for the remainder of the trek, focusing instead on her mission. She probed the Force for any disturbance, kept eyes roving behind every pillar, ears open to the slightest off putting sound, but there was nothing. Much to everyone's relief, the convoy crossed the wide courtyard to the council building in peace.

Ariala watched as the Princess moved inside, accompanied only by a single handmaiden. She had to fight not to stare. The Jedi could see her own features in the princess, and the Force hummed at her as Leia moved by, an energy like static popping momentarily between them. Leia seemed unfazed by it, if she had even felt it at all, and crossed into the room silently.

Fate was cruel indeed. Ariala fell into the waiting formation with the others, her mind racing. She knew them both now, her brother and her sister, but fate laughed as she was kept apart.

 _Master…did you know? Did you know I would be made to suffer them so close yet so impossibly far away?_

She thought of Luke, her closest friend on Tatooine now so many star systems away. So many years they had been side-by-side, drawn together by the Force. And now she foresaw the same with Leia. Was this what Ben had wanted when he sent her here? To have the family she always wanted dangled before her, beyond her grasp? Was this a test of her patience? Her resolve?

If Luke and Leia were her siblings, then they too were Vader's children. What would they think if they learned the truth? Learned about their reason for surviving? She glanced at the door.

Did that reason even exist anymore? Leia had a family here and Luke his own on Tatooine. Though it may not have been perfect, they both knew happiness and a life of peace. And Leia, princess of the galaxy's kindest and warmest people would have wanted for nothing. Ariala doubted she even knew her parents were of different blood. Bail would never submit his child to face down the empire, no matter how strong she may one day become. And Luke…Luke was tied to the outer rim planet by Ben and his uncle.

No, she was alone. She had them, she knew them, but she was alone in her destiny. And for all that mattered, she had no family.

 _xxxxx_

Within five minutes of being in the room, Leia immediately regretted her decision to come. The councilors danced pitifully around the incident and regarded her with the softest kid gloves she had ever seen. Even her father seemed loathe to fully address the matter at hand.

She huffed as yet another councilor stood. "Senator, if you don't disagree, the matter should be handled by outside forces, to keep Alderaan safe from…" his eyes flickered to Leia and the girl rolled her own. "…further incidents."

"Incidents," Leia huffed. "Just call it what it is, councilor."

"Leia," Bail's tone warned her to silence.

She didn't listen. "I am not afraid to look what happened yesterday in the eye. An attempt was made on my life. To kill me. If I can say those words why can't any of you?" She glared around the room and took their silence to continue. "I appreciate your concern, all of you, but I am just one Alderaanian. If this could happen to me, it could happen to any of our citizens."

Leia turned to her father. "If you are right in your belief that this attack came as a result of the empire's provocation against the Alliance, then any member of the rebellion is at risk. I was a target because of my name but how many may be slaughtered in the shadows?"

The council stirred, muttering with understanding.

Leia stepped closer to the center, emboldened. "This attack was to create fear. To warn us away from our rebellion. But it came because the empire fears _us._ So we cannot give in. We cannot bend to the emperor's attacks, be they direct or through pawns! Do not be afraid to speak the truth of what happened and do not be afraid to confront it. The Alliance cannot let something like this break all you have achieved so far. Alderaan is the home of the Alliance, if we give in, they all give in. Do not tear hope from the galaxy just because of me."

Her impromptu speech drew to a close, the room quickly filling with thick silence. Many of the council looked to Bail for example.

The senator, in turn, looked at his council. He saw in them the tentative flickering of agreement that he felt building within himself. He had always known she had Padme's spark but it burned him to see it getting brighter. Leia was going to be a light to the galaxy, he realized, no matter what he wanted, he could not stop it.

Swallowing the lump in his throat, he stood. "My daughter," Leia beamed under the pride in his voice, "is right."

As though they had been holding their breath, the council erupted in agreement. Bail allowed it for a moment before holding his hand up for pause. "We must counter the empire's sway of the people, if we are to ensure peace. As it now stands, with their fear ruling the galaxy, even if we succeeded in taking down Palpatine tomorrow, we would fall to the people still so loyal to them."

Leia stepped back as he continued, the council, more energetically delving into a solution.

 _xxxxx_

The meeting continued for several hours after that, though the lengthy assembly did end in a solution they could happily agree upon: the Alliance would create their own propaganda and distribute it secretly through their network of spies to mid and outer rim planets not yet fully in the empire's pockets. Even Leia felt confident it would turn the tides. And so, when the room dumped out, the atmosphere brightened in light of their hope.

Leia hovered behind, watching them leave.

"You did well."

She tossed a smile back to her father. "I told you I could be better used here."

Bail chuckled. "Yes, I think you may have a point. But your studies must continue to come first. You may attend next week's meeting as normal, but you must _listen_ only."

She frowned.

"Leia."

"Yes, father."

"Good." He led her gently toward the door. "Now I'm sure your mother would be happy to see you. Come, it's about time for lunch."

Leia broke ahead by a step, pausing as the guards moved to form around her. "Again?"

"Yes, again."

"Father, this really is too much. So many guards would be better served on the streets. The Celebration is still trying to go on but so many are so scared."

"There are plenty of soldiers on the ground. You will remain in this squad's care."

"I don't even know half of these reserves," she complained. "They could be out to get me, too." It was a weak effort and she knew it, but she really hated the fuss.

Bail only smirked. "You're right." Turning to the guard, he said, "Introduce yourselves."

Immediately they fell into a two lines, flanking the Princess. Those part of her normal guard stepped back, already well-known to the princess, and the rest faced her saluting. Leia laughed, un-amused.

One-by-one they stated their names and gave some variation on swearing to protect her. Most, she let slide over her head. If her father had his way, she'd have plenty of time to get to know them.

Ariala stepped forward as the introductions rounded toward her. "I am Ariala, originally of squad 286, your highness." The Force static popped again and this time, it seemed Leia noticed. She cocked her head and took in the young girl. "Aren't you…the Je-? " Bail coughed loudly behind her and Leia graciously took the hint.

Ariala gave no response so Leia stepped closer, tilting the girl's face toward her own. "You are! You're the one that stopped that assassin." She wheeled around. "But a cadet, father?"

Bail nodded. "In my eyes, by saving your life, she has earned the promotion. Besides, I thought you might have fewer objections if you had at least one sentry who you didn't have to crane your neck to see."

Leia reddened under the tease and playfully smacked her father's shoulder as the introductions continued.

Ariala stepped back into place, the small patch of her cheek where Leia touched burning with her secret. For the first time since her arrival, she hated being on Alderaan.

* * *

The month's following the assassination attempt were silent, peace falling quickly back to the Planet of Beauty. The alliance's plan was so far faring well, while internal investigations had spoiled two smaller assassination plots for key council members, and Leia's inclusion on the meetings had been met with great acceptance, the girl often pulled in to broker peace between them. Bail had even allowed Leia to wander the palace grounds with a reduced escort after three months of peace went uninterrupted.

"I only ask that you keep Ariala at your side. She is good for you and skilled guard."

Leia made a great fuss of agreeing but, in truth, despite herself, the young Princess found herself drawn to the female.

Ariala was the perfect soldier. She only answered questions with as few words as possible and never dropped formality. She hovered out of sight like a shadow but was immediately at her side if she called. Leia found it a bit fun to worm her way under the girl's thick walls.

The Jedi, on the other hand, found the game painful. Burying away the pull of the Force was draining and hard on her heart no matter how desperately she tried to close it. Leia was so effervescent and kind, a feeling of warmth in the great power that reminded Ariala of her broken Force-memories of Padme. She both wanted to embrace the girl within her heart and push the whole thing away. Conflict raged within her daily and Leia's effort to weasel something from her only made it that much harder to resist.

"You didn't have many friends your own age, did you?" Leia asked one day while they walked the grounds. Ariala hovered a step behind her, the other two guards further back just beyond Isamira.

As expected, Ariala did not answer.

"My father told me that a general from the Clone wars raised you." Still nothing. "Rescued from the empire."

Ariala gave in. "Yes, your highness."

"On Tatooine, right?"

Again, "Yes, your highness."

"That's a rough planet, I hear. Even before the Emperor. Why go there, I wonder."

With no question to answer, the Jedi remained silent.

"What do you do on a place like that for fun, anyway?"

"Canyon racing, mainly, your highness."

"You ever win?"

"I did not participate, your high-"

"Then what did _you_ do for fun?"

Again, the girl fell silent and Leia groaned. "Really? You won't even answer that? I thought my father assigned you so I'd have someone my own age to talk to, but I'd have a better conversation with a wall!"

Frustratingly, Ariala did not respond.

"Gah! Come here!" Leia dragged her ahead, waving off the guards that hurried to close the gap. Parted enough to prevent the rest of her group overhearing, she faced off the young Jedi. "Do you have some kind of problem with me?"

"No, your highness."

"Then what is it? You've been on my guard almost half a year but I swear I can count on two hands all the words you've said to me that weren't 'yes', 'no', or 'your highness'." Leia pulled her closer. "And I've tried. I thought first maybe you were too nervous or scared but no matter what I've said to you, you give me nothing!"

"I was not aware my duties as a guard included conversation."

"Oh, so you can speak!"

"My business is my own, Princess. If you have a problem with my -"

"I have a problem with someone who is supposed to protect me refusing to open up. How am I supposed to have confidence in you this way?"

"Are my skills in question?"

"Right now I couldn't give two bantha ticks about your skills – Jedi or not," she added with a hiss before jabbing her finger toward the guards in the distance. "Sheenr has three sisters and three daughters. He's the only male of this family for four generations, his favorite food is oro bark and he keeps a secret stash under his bed because it's the only way his family doesn't find out." She shifted to the other guard. "And Eddiric can't go two rotations without calling home to his father because they only recently lost his younger brother in an attack on an empire star ship." She dropped her hand. "I know them, I know their stories and through that I know my reliance in them is not misplaced.

"But you – you're a secret and that is more than aggravating. It's untrustworthy."

"If you doubt me, have me dismissed."

The smooth rebuttal only poured oil on the princess's ire and she was slapping the girl before realizing what she was doing. "Why are you so stuck up?! I heard how you don't even talk to your squad anymore. Weren't they your friends? Do you even know what a friend _is?_ " She threw up her hands in frustration, Ariala's expression barely changing under the verbal barrage. "You keep up your cold shoulder and you're bound to die alone!"

Leia did not wait for the inevitable silence, stomping off.

Ariala did not follow.

Nor did she rejoin the group later that evening, secluding herself in the quiet gardens in which she had been left. Settled under a gently leaning Chinar Tree, she melted into the Force.

 _Master, I need your guidance. I cannot continue to face her on my own…_

It came as no surprise that he did not answer. She knew he was too far away to feel her, to hear her. Still she reached out for him, seeking something that would tell her what to do next. Old memories floated back to her, crystal clear in the Force.

 _A Jedi must never forget: purpose over feelings._

 _You have a great future ahead of you, padawan. Do not lose sight of yourself in it._

 _The care of that which we protect is the very fuel that spurs a Jedi. But there must be balance. Life and death are a matter of fact. You must be able to let go when the time comes. But embrace and respect life as it lives and do not seek to throttle it. A flower only grows largest when it is given ample room._

Moment by moment, his relevant teachings returned to her. Advice she had either forgotten, or at the time, deemed unimportant now soothed her misgivings.

 _I can tell her then?_

The Force shuddered as the possible future of such an action turned red.

 _But I must accept her…_

It calmed slightly, still shivering.

 _She will always be my sister. I cannot avoid that. But I need not fear it._

Almost instantly she felt the knot in her chest from so many months loosen under the Force. She opened her eyes, breathing peacefully.

"Leia…"

Night had already fallen; the Princess would have retired to her chambers. Ariala sighed. Patience.

 _xxxxx_

Leia stared as she stepped from her chambers the next morning to see Ariala once again leading her contingent. It wasn't her return – she was a strict enough soldier to know her duty – but there was something different about her. As Leia stepped by, she could just barely make out her whisper, "Am I allowed to be friends with the princess?"

The princess turned back, but Ariala had pulled herself to attention, staring ahead. A smile, however, just tugged at the corner of her lips and Leia, for the first time, felt something positive from her.

 _xxxxx_

In the weeks that passed, Leia finally learned more about her mysterious guard.

"I have a brother, and a sister," Ariala revealed as they watched the stardancer flies from Leia's balustrade. "But I had to part from them when I came here. I cannot even tell them where I am."

"Why not?"

"Because I left…to join the rebellion. If they knew, they would be in danger."

Leia didn't need to look at her to feel the sadness in the Jedi's words. It was clear this was the burden that she held onto for so long.

"I'm sure this separation won't last forever. The rebellion will win and when we do," Leia placed a comforting hand over Ariala's. "You can go back to them and be a family again."

Tears choked them as blue eyes searched brown. Oh how Leia would never know how much Ariala desperately needed that to be true.

Leia pulled the girl into a tight hug and Ariala could not hold back the silent tears that spilled from her eyes. Every hurt and worry she had buried since she first stepped foot on Alderaan, nearly one year ago, found release in her gentle crying, and Leia, so maternal at heart, simply held the girl.

* * *

The deep and secretive underground bunker bustled with rumor and fear as the main arms of the rebellion floundered around their dwindling supplies. They all pretended not to notice the room at the other end, alit with fiery spirits. The leaders within, voices raised, debated their next move.

"A decision needs to be made." Draven cried, nearly wagging his finger at Mon Mothma.

Pamlo countered, "If it's war you want, you'll fight alone!"

From the other side of the table Vaspar said, "If that's the way it's going, why have an Alliance at all?"

"Councilors, please!" Mothma's voice was enough to cut the debate for a brief second and Blue Leader swept into the silence.

"It is simple, the empire has the means of mass destruction. The Rebellion does not."

"A Death Star? This is nonsense."

"What reason would my father have to lie," the young Jyn asked, bitterness on her tongue. She could hardly believe the great and powerful alliance was arguing about like a bunch of children. How hard was it to understand that the empire – greatest evil of the galaxy – was in possession of a weapon that could destroy planets?! Her father died so she could save them and they refused to take her seriously?

Already they were at it again, decrying the possibility and ducking their heads in the sand.

"What chance do we have?" She asked. "The question is 'What choice?' Run? Hide? Plead for mercy? Scatter your forces? You give way to an enemy this evil, with this much power, and you condemn the galaxy to an eternity of submission. The time to fight is now!"

A few voices chimed in agreement and she pushed on. "Every moment you waste is another step closer to the ashes of Jedha."

They stirred at the idea she was building toward. They wouldn't like it. But she had a plan, more than they did. "Send your best troops to Scarif. Send the whole rebel fleet if you have to. We need to capture the Death Star plans if there is any hope of destroying it."

The councilors watched her in silent disbelief and Jyn waited for them to erupt again. Instead, only Pamlo spoke, leaning forward with enough interest Jyn was almost sure she'd be on board. "You're asking us to invade an imperial installation based on nothing but hope?"

"Rebellions are built on hope."

Mothma shook her head. It was a plan, but she could see it in their eyes: no one agreed. "I'm sorry Jyn, without the full support of the council, the odds are too great."

Jyn scowled and broke away from the table. She was done with the red tape of politics! If they wanted to concede to the empire, she wasn't going to be a part of it.

The councilors watched her go, momentarily saddened by her anger. They had not wanted to lose hope either, but death star or no, the empire had gotten too big to be taken out by such a small band of merry flyboys.

Mothma sighed, re-centering herself. "We need to prepare our evacuation. The empire will be looking for us so we must be discreet. Blue leader, your squads will orbit and be our eyes. Secure hyperspace passageways."

She waved a hand over the holo-table, a display popping up of their fleet. "We have over fifteen cruisers to move - " the rest of her words were cut off as a flight controller stepped in.

"Commander."

"Yes?"

"Did you authorize a 'Rogue One' to take the Imperial Ship?"

Mothma's face's paled. "Erso…" she exhaled, barely believing the thief's bravery. "Yes. Yes I did. Track their destination and prepare to launch on my command."

"Of course, commander."

Mothma turned back to the startled councilors. "It seems a new choice has been laid before us. Will we turn our backs on them?"

They fidgeted under her gaze and some seemed ready to argue, but they remained silent long enough she took it as begrudging acquiescence. "Good. Prepare your fleets. We have only one chance at this."

They bustled from the room, muttering amongst themselves.

"Bail, a word."

Bail stopped, watching his old friend. As the other councilors moved further away, her façade of confidence slipped into worry. "Despite what the others say, war is inevitable."

He nodded, his mind working double. "Yes, I agree." A pause. "I will not be able to join the fleet. I must return to Alderaan to inform my people that there will be no peace. The empire knows us too well. We will need every advantage."

"Wait," again, Mothma paused his retreat. "Your friend, the Jedi." A last hope.

Bail's eyes darkened. Kenobi. "He served me well during the Clone Wars and has lived in hiding since the emperor's purge."

Mothma pleaded silently with him and the man nodded. "Yes, I will send for him."

"You'll need someone you can trust."

"I would trust her with my life."

 _xxxxx_

 _Leia, I had hoped to be home after all of this, to tell you in person, but I'm afraid that is no longer possible._

The little Bail hologram wavered on its disc as Leia watched. That her father had made efforts to contact her from the secretive rebel base only meant bad news. Her heart clenched as he spoke.

 _Leia, before I left, the council came to an agreement that you are ready for more responsibility. You are wise and patient and your advice has kept us from deciding too late or too rashly. You have the trappings of a wonderful senator._

He smiled at her glowing face and dreaded what he would have to ask next. Just behind his daughter, he could make out the outline of her Jedi guard.

 _Ariala, come closer._

Leia's face vanished for a second as she let the girl into frame, then reemerged as the holographic camera adjusted on the two figures.

 _Leia, Ariala. I have a mission for you. One of utmost urgency to the survival of the alliance. The empire is in possession of a weapon capable of great power but we have received word that there lies a weakness in it. A small team has been dispatched to retrieve the plans from within the Imperial installation. But it may not be enough._

His eyes moved to Ariala. _You must go to Tatooine. Obi-Wan Kenobi may be our last hope._ He looked back to Leia. _The Jedi are our last hope._

 _Prepare a cruiser and leave immediately. I have already sent instructions to the council. They will support you._

 _Go, my daughter. I trust you with this more than I would trust anyone else._

Bail smiled as warmly as he could, praying the cold message could transmit his burning love to her. He had never wanted her to take on a mission so treacherous, but he was faced with little choice.

She has the Jedi to guide her, his mind tried to reason. She will be fine.

Giving one last wave, the hologram clicked off and Leia, focused solely on her assignment, met Ariala's eyes. "Let's go."

 _ **To be continued….**_


	5. Captured

**Chapter 4: Captured**

The white hallways of the Senate cruiser seemed to go on forever, and as Leia looked around at the many consoles and droids she was not even aware of the fact that they had left the system in which she was raised. Hyperspace carried them quickly and silently towards the outer rim, towards her mission, towards the empire.

Anxiety swirled in her heart but she clamped it down to her toes. She could do this. She had to do this. Everyone was counting on her. She forced attention back to the ship. The cruiser had only recently been added to the fleet, equipped with the latest technology, weaponry, and travel comforts. The interior still glittered with newness, having barely been used since its initiation.

"Ariala, isn't it beautiful?" Leia said to the young woman behind her.

Ariala nodded from within the folds of her navy cloak, feeling much more at home in the old fabric. "Much nicer than the last ship I was on."

Leia chuckled. "Well I would hope so. The hold of a cargo ship doesn't exactly sound like the lap of luxury."

The Jedi allowed herself a small chuckle. Like Leia, she was working hard to keep control of her feelings. They had not had a lot of time to digest what was happening. As soon as Leia received the request, they had been ushered onto the new ship prepared in haste by the council and launched merely twenty minutes later. Only now was she able to realize what going back to Tatooine meant.

Ben…Luke…she could see them again. And she would not need to take on the emperor alone.

But there was also a disturbance building in the Force that unnerved her. The last message with Bail made her cold. Death was on the horizon, she foresaw it, but she could not place it. It was too vague. She hadn't told Leia her worries. She hoped she was wrong.

* * *

The desert night was ending and the cooler temperatures were beginning to dissipate. The hot sun's rays beat down upon the earth before the suns even became visible. Luke Skywalker sat in the cockpit of his speeder, the engine idling but going nowhere.

It had been over a year since Ari randomly vanished from the planet and he knew she had finally gotten off the rock, but lately, he had been plagued by nightmares. Her voice in the dark, calling to him; pain and anger radiated out of her, and she was alone.

He didn't know why he thought they meant anything at all, but nonetheless they weighed on him, robbing of him sound sleep and troubling his soul. And so, he found himself out here, staring at the stars, wishing his little ship could take him wherever she was.

Further, in the otherwise empty dessert, Ben stared at the same sky. The Force roiled in unbalance; the future shifted and clouded over; his padawan's journey fell into darkness.

Something was happening. Something he could no longer predict.

* * *

The large Star Destroyer that trailed behind the dwarfed the Ambassador ship seemed to be playing with its fleeing prey. It fired almost lazily at the darting ship, barely giving full power to the laser canons.

The little ship tried its hardest to maneuver away, firing back vainly, but the Destroyer was too large and too well manned. The ship rocked violently as the Destroyer landed a hit on the main reactor. The smaller ship's engines whined as they powered down.

Leia stared out the window, cursing the Destroyer under her breath and darted away. "Ari, come on! We cannot let them re-take these plans!"

Ariala tailed her as they peeled away from the command center, skidding to a halt as a wave of oppressive power surged through the Force. She had never felt the power of the dark side, and thankfully, her instincts were faster than in her mind. She sealed her power within herself, cutting her conscious bond with the Force and hiding her Jedi presence. If he knew…

She shuddered at the thought and took off after Leia, barely catching her dragging the small blue astro-mech down a maintenance path.

 _xxxxx_

Tensions mounted in the small group facing the docking bay, blasters primed. The Destroyer had them pinned and they could just make out the seal of the docking tube attach beyond the white door. Whatever came through, they had to hold firm. The silence was deafening, then, _bang!_ as the door was suddenly blasted away. The men jumped as, for a moment, the debris cloud was all that wafted through, then suddenly, through the rubble stepped a horde of stormtroopers their own blasters lighting the hall red as they fired.

Their legendary aim cleared the rebel fighters in seconds. They barely had time to confirm the "all-clear" before the looming figure of Darth Vader walked through the still smoking hole. His anger radiated like a disease and the troopers stepped back from even the sweep of his cape as he strode through the hall.

"Status."

A 501st commander stepped forward. "The Death Star plans are not in the main computer."

Vader rounded on the nearest rebel, a barely alive fighter supported by the troopers. His gloved hand wrapped tightly around the boy's throat. "Where are those transmissions you intercepted? What have you done with those plans?"

"We intercepted no transmissions," the man said with some difficulty. "We are on a diplomatic mission, this is a counselor ship."

"If this is a counselor ship, where is the ambassador?" With each word, Vader's grip tightened, the man gaping silently, clawing for release, as his life was choked out of him. "Commander, tear this ship apart until you've found those plans and bring me the passengers, I want them alive!"

The trooper jumped to attention. "Yes, sir."

* * *

The maintenance path glowed red as emergency power was diverted from non-essential systems, like the steaming pipes of this room that provided the luxury of hot and cold water to the lavatories. Ariala stood watch as Leia recorded a message to Obi-Wan, slipping the stolen plans into R2's safe keeping. The Jedi resisted the urge to add her own message. This was not the time.

The sounds of metal feet drew her attention and she turned sharply to see C-3PO, the golden protocol droid, wander by, calling for his smaller counterpart. In response the little droid whistled his arrival as he emerged from the path, Leia ducking out of sight.

"At last! Where have you been?" 3PO said as he began chasing the little droid down the hall.

"Are you sure they'll make it?" Ariala said as she hid behind a stack of crates.

"I've never seen two more dedicated droids in all my life. They'll make it." Leia looked over and gave her friend a smile before hiding behind another stack of crates on the opposite side of the hall, a blaster raised ready for anyone who came.

A few tense minutes passed before anyone passed the hall and Ariala grit her teeth at the blank anticipation. She had come to rely on the Force's subtle information, but closed to it as she was, she had no forewarning when three stormtroopers stepped in, Leia's crisp white dress a beacon that drew their attention. They waited not even a moment and as Leia stepped out to fire, one of them blasted her, the stun wave knocking her instantly to the ground.

"Son of a - " The Jedi swore, launching from her own position, saber alight as she darted forward. Her sudden appearance caught them off guard and she easily separated the closest trooper from his blaster arm, the limb and soldier falling to the ground.

She threw herself over Leia's prone form, knocking back their attacks but she knew before it happened she was in too close quarters to keep up the assault. The third trooper, keeping watch from the doorway fired on her, the same stun wave that took out Leia, knocking her into unconsciousness. The saber rolled from her hands, blade retracting.

The soldiers closed in, blasters still aimed. "Don't worry, they're still alive. Inform Lord Vader we have two prisoners. We'll bring them to him once they awaken. 89, head back to the ship and get that arm looked at."

"Yes, sir." The wounded trooper walked out while the other two pulled the limp bodies to the side. "I'll stay here and watch them while you report to Lord Vader. They should be waking up pretty soon."

"Yes, sir."

* * *

Darth Vader watched, absentmindedly as his troopers bustled about the command center of the rebel ship, searching through files and records for anything that may be of use to their leader. His main focus was on the Force, swelling around him. A slight, almost too-distant-to-notice, disturbance had been tingling his mind since they first engaged the Alderaanian cruiser and now it ebbed and flowed in the Force, impossible to grab. His ire danced on the edge. What was it?!

Somewhere, in the physical world, he heard the mechanical notes of a trooper's helmet forming his name. The Sith Lord pulled himself from his meditation and rounded slowly on the man. "What is it?"

"Sir, we've secured the princess."

Good news at least. Vader strode from the room as the prisoners were marched up the hallways to meet him. He recognized the Royal Alderaanian dress immediately, leveling his dark eyes on Leia as they drew closer. He barely acknowledged the semi-conscious handmaiden being dragged just behind her.

"Lord Vader," the trooper saluted, turning the Sith's attention away from the captives. "These are the two we found in the cargo hold. They were armed only with these." The trooper held out Leia's blaster and the lightsaber, in which Vader took a sudden interest.

He turned to face his captive. "How is it that you have this, _princess?_ "

Leia drew herself up. "I hardly think that's any of your concern."

"Possessing such a _keepsake_ ," Vader hissed, "could be seen as an act of rebellion. You should be more careful."

"Is that why you carried out this absolutely _unprovoked_ attack on my ship?" Leia countered, not shying away from the Sith's threat. "The Imperial Senate will not sit for this, when they hear you've attacked a diplomatic-"

"Don't as so surprised, your highness," Vader said accenting the last two words with unavoidable sarcasm. "You weren't on any mercy mission this time. Several transmissions were passed to this ship by Rebel spies. I want to know what happened to the plans they sent you."

"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm a member of the Imperial Senate on a diplomatic mission to Alderaan—"

"You're a part of the Rebel Alliance...and a traitor!" Vader roared, his anger making it impossible to focus. "Take them away!"

The troopers obeyed and nudged the two females down the hall and out of the blasted door. All the while, Ariala kept looking back at Vader and her lightsaber, which he pocketed before walking off.

* * *

Luke stared up at the sky, to the faded outline of the hovering Destroyer just beyond orbit. He hadn't been able to sleep again, the nightmares growing worse. And now this. A terrible dread washed over him, striking him cold to his core. Why was the empire all the way out here, and why was he so sure that somehow his friend was involved?

The boy shook his head vigorously, desperate to clear it of the phantom messages he did not understand.

* * *

Leia struggled against the bonds keeping her propped against the cold, metal wall, straining her limbs as much as possible but to a continued lack of avail. Beside her, Ariala sagged against her own bonds, fruitless struggle worn out of her. So that was Darth Vader. That was her father. She had only felt his crushing, biting, evil Force presence for a split second, but it was enough to haunt her. The dark side…the dark side was a power she had never imagined. The Force screamed, corrupted by his mistreatment, begging to be set free…she was selfishly glad she had closed herself to it. _How am I supposed to face_ _ **that**_ _…?_

"Ari. Ari are you okay?"

Leia's worried whispers pulled the girl from her head and the Jedi nodded, tucking away her family drama for another day.

"As okay as I can be." She pulled herself up and gave Leia a half smile. This was not the time to be worrying about a future battle. The plan, the mission….Ben…everything now lie in the hands of the two droids and she worried if they had even made it off the cruiser before Vader arrived.

"I'm sorry about your lightsaber…"

Ariala stared. "What…?"

"The lightsaber…Vader took it. I'm sorry. I know that means a lot to you."

She cringed. It was more than a lot to her. The saber was imbued with her own spirit, her own Force. Vader would have no trouble reading the crystal within. There was no hiding from him now. She shrugged with false calm. "It's just a thing. We have bigger problems."

Leia sighed, the impending torture freezing her blood. "Yes…quite our first adventure…"

The little chamber quieted again, each of them lost in their own worries, until the doors slid open with an uncomfortably loud hiss and 4 troopers stepped in. "You two, let's go."

Immediately Leia's mask fell into place. "Address us correctly. When asking women to do anything you say it politely."

Ariala could have sworn she saw the lead trooper roll his eyes behind the white helmet. "Get them out, 97." A second trooper undid the clasps that held the two to the wall, painfully jerking overextended shoulders behind their back and leading them off the Destroyer.

"We have them Lord Vader."

"Good. Alert the commander on the Death Star of my arrival."

"Yes, sir."

The shuttle engines whirred and the console beeped as it lifted off of the floor and zipped out of the hanger. It was only a few moments until they arrived at the Death Star, the looming moon-sized station a blot on the star-capped sky, and the two prisoners were dragged to yet another cell.

"I don't think I have been forced to do so much in my entire life," Leia said as they were thrust unceremoniously into the small room.

Ariala did not have the heart to meet her humor and only chuckled softly.

"We should try to get some rest. Vader doesn't exactly strike me a talking sort…" Leia trailed off as her imagination painted a gruesome scenario. "We need to be strong enough to resist him."

"You first, highness." Ariala hurried on as Leia opened her mouth to protest. "I'm of no importance to him. He will come for you first."

As though to prove her point, the doors once again slid open and Vader, flanked now by militant officers, in addition to his loyal troopers, regarded them from the entryway.

Without a word, two of the troopers stepped forward and grabbed Leia, dragging her from the room.

"Leave her be!" Ariala struggled against the other troopers and for a moment, just a second of emotion-fueled weakness, she reached to the Force for help. The weight of Vader's power snapped her to attention and she withdrew the attempt but it had been enough. She felt Vader's eyes on her, felt his own probing into her mind.

She pretended unaware, focusing only on the princess being dragged away from her and the armored arms keeping her from giving chase.

The troopers withdrew with the princess and the officers stepped back to leave, but Vader waited several more seconds. He knew what he had sensed…but what did it mean?

He took one last look at her before leaving the room. She was of much more interest than he thought.

* * *

Ben stepped slowly over the rocky wasteland, picking his way carefully through the desert.

His unfocused mind wandered uncomfortably to his apprentice. He thought, just a day or so ago, that he felt her unique glimmer in the Force, but it was swept away before he could confirm it. And on top of that, he had felt the familiar darkness from so many, many years ago. Vader. The possibilities of what it all meant unnerved him and meditation did nothing but reveal more confusion. That was why he had come out here; it was by the will of the Force that he moved across the so-called badlands. The living essence pulled him, calling on his specific talents, though it tittered vaguely as to what he was supposed to do.

As though finally prepared to reveal its long-planned surprise, the Force led him to his mission. Across the ridge, a group of strangely dressed creatures, about five all together, digging in an idle speeder. Tusken Raiders. They dug hurriedly through an abandoned speeder, objects flying everywhere as they chattered amongst themselves about their findings.

Ben sighed, the childish jumping of the Force confirming that he was to intervene. He pulled his large cloak over his head, spread his arms, and wailed wildly as he lumbered toward the scene.

The Raiders started, as expected, and with their abrupt departure, Ben saw the real reason for his calling: the form of a young, sandy blonde, boy lying prone on the rocks. "Luke."

Rushing over, he knelt near the boy checking his pulse and heart rate, sighing calmly as he confirmed the signs of life. "Come now, wake up." He tapped Luke's face gently, attention drawn away by a soft moan-like whistle. Pulling his hood out of the way of his eyes, he slipped it off looking at the creator of the noise. His eyes met R2-D2 and he smiled at the little droid. "Hello there! Come here my little friend. Don't be afraid." The little blue droid waddled forward slowly as Luke groaned, his eyes opening.

"Ugh…what happened?" his head throbbed and vision struggled to adjust to the seemingly infinite brightness.

"Rest easy, son, you've had a busy day." Ben pulled the boy up. "You're fortunate you're still in one piece."

Luke really wished he could have stayed lying down. He was only just starting to feel better when the shift in position spawned a wave of nausea that nearly knocked him back down. As it ebbed away, he finally took in his savior. "Ben?" He could just make out the old hermit. "Ben Kenobi! Boy, am I glad to see you!"

The retired Jedi returned the boy's smile and nodded. "The Jundland wastes are not to be traveled lightly. Tell me young Luke, what brings you out this far?" The elder sat on a rock, Luke following his actions.

"Oh, this little droid." Luke gestured to the patiently waiting R2. "I think he might have been stolen because he's searching for his former master. I've never seen such devotion in a droid before...there seems to be no stopping him. He claims to be the property of an Obi-Wan Kenobi. Is he a relative of yours? Do you know who he's talking about?"

Ben leaned back as far as he could without falling, scratching his scruffy beard. "Obi-Wan Kenobi...Obi-Wan… Now that's a name I haven't heard in a long time...a long time."

"I think my uncle knew him. He said he was dead."

"Oh, he's not dead, not...not yet." Ben felt the Force tremble, once again, childish in its excitement as things fell into place. He would have laughed if not for the weight of realization pressing on him as well.

"You know him."

"Well of course, of course I know him." Ben paused, taking a breath before going in for the dive. According to the Force, it was time. "He's me." Luke gaped, mind still swimming. Ben continued, "I haven't gone by the name Obi-Wan since, oh, before you were born."

Piece by piece, Luke understood. "Then the droid does belong to you!"

Been shook his head. "Don't seem to remember ever owning a droid. Very interesting..." The Force suddenly rumbled in warning, drawing his attention to the overhanging cliffs. "I think we better get indoors. The sand people are easily startled but they will soon be back and in greater numbers." The two stood as R2 beeped softly, a distance away.

As he stood, Luke made out the shape of his second droid half buried in the sand. "3PO!" Luke rushed over.

"Oh what happened? I must have taken a bad step…" his gears whirred, grinding the sand within as he shifted.

"Can you stand, 3PO? We've got to get out of here before those sand people return."

* * *

Looking at the small hut was the first time Luke felt that maybe he didn't have thing so bad in his uncle's sprawling complex. The boy nearly knocked things over as he moved around and was grateful when he was offered a seat beside the small main room table.

Ben shuffled, fetching them each a drink, before taking his own seat. "Luke, you mentioned that the droids might have been stolen. Where did you acquire them?"

"My uncle bought them from some Jawas yesterday. 3PO says they've been in the rebellion."

"The rebellion? So it's reached out this far? Hmm." Then it was quite possible he had felt Vader…and his padawan. He barely registered Luke's response.

"Yeah, I was surprised by it too, but I saw the Destroyer." The boy leaned back with a dreamy expression. "I wonder what it's like up there; fighting against the empire."

"Not as glorious as your imagination makes it seem, Luke. You father thought battle would be fun as well. He was greatly mistaken."

"My father? You knew him?"

"I fought alongside him. We were together in nearly every battle. Clone Wars included."

"You fought in the Clone Wars?" The disbelief in Luke's voice was mingled with awe.

"It's quiet true, young Luke." Ben couldn't help something of a smug smile. "Yes, I was once a Jedi Knight, same as your father."

Luke crumpled. "No, my father didn't fight in the wars. He was a navigator on a spice freighter."

"That's what your uncle told you. He didn't hold with your father's ideals; thought he should have stayed here and not gotten involved."

If possible, the boy deflated even more. "I wish I'd known him."

Ben nodded. How much would have changed if that had been the case. "He was the best star-pilot in the galaxy, and a cunning warrior." He leaned forward, forcing his old memories to silence. "I understand you've become quite a good pilot yourself. He would be proud of your skills."

Luke took the compliment with a shy shrug.

Ben rose and went to his storage chest rummaging through. "Which reminds me…I have something here for you." Ben stood, Anakin's old saber tight in his grip. "Your father wanted you to have this when you were old enough, but your uncle wouldn't allow it. He feared you might follow old Obi-Wan on some damned-fool idealistic crusade like your father did."

"Sir," 3PO suddenly cut in, highly unaware of his inappropriate timing. "If you'll not be needing me, I'll close down for a while."

"Sure, go ahead." Luke answered absentmindedly, having almost forgotten about the droids. He took the saber from Ben's offering hand, holding it reverently. "What is it?"

"Your father's lightsaber. This is the weapon of a Jedi Knight. Not as clumsy or as random as a blaster."

Luke pushed a little red button on the handle. A long blue beam extended from the handle and Luke swung the saber with interest. It felt surprisingly comfortable in his hands, despite his unfamiliarity with it.

Ben watched the boy, feeling harmony return to the Force. "An elegant weapon for a more civilized time," he said as he retook his seat. "For over a thousand generations the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times, before the empire."

Luke retracted the saber and refocused his attention on Ben. Whether or not be believed the whole clone wars and Jedi story, the old man did seem to have some answers and the boy was hungry for information. "How did my father die?"

"A young Jedi named Darth Vader, who was a pupil of mine until he turned to evil, helped the empire hunt down and destroy the Jedi Knights. He betrayed and murdered your father." The half-truth was all he could bring himself to reveal. Ariala had had more time, more knowledge and patience. Luke was too new to this world to accept the truth. "Now the Jedi are all but extinct."

Luke frowned. "Why did he turn evil?

"Vader was seduced by the dark side of the Force."

"The Force?"

"Well, the Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us. It binds the galaxy together." Ben turned to look at R2 who was beeping for attention, having clearly run out of patience. "Now, let's see if we can't figure out what you are, my little friend. And where you come from."

"I saw part of the message he was -" The start of the recording cut Luke off.

 _General Kenobi, years ago you served my father in the Clone Wars. Now he begs you to help him in his struggle against the empire. I regret that I am unable to present my father's request to you in person, but my ship has fallen under attack and I'm afraid my mission to bring you to Alderaan has failed. I have placed information vital to the survival of the Rebellion into the memory systems of this R2 unit. My father will know how to retrieve it. You must see this droid safely delivered to him on Alderaan. This is our most desperate hour. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi, you're my only hope._

The message faded out leaving the hut in silence.

Ben's mind churned with dark thoughts. If Leia was on the run, if Alderaan had fallen to such danger…how did his pupil fare? The brief flash of her presence in the Force seemed all the more solid. He felt cold, even in the heat of midday. He had been too impatient…he has sent her to her death. His plea to Luke was more direct than he intended; Ben could not wait. "You must learn the ways of the Force if you're to come with me to Alderaan," Ben said after a moment.

Luke laughed at the statement. "Alderaan? I'm not going to Alderaan. I've got to go home. It's late. I'm in for it as it is."

"I need your help, Luke. She needs your help." _Your sisters need your help_. "I'm getting too old for this sort of thing."

"I can't get involved! I've got work to do!" Luke stepped away, doubling back only to add "it's not that I like the empire. I hate it! But there's nothing I can do about it right now." He sighed. "It's such a long way from here."

"That's your uncle talking."

"Oh, God, my uncle. How am I ever going to explain this?"

"Learn about the Force, Luke," Ben pressed again.

Luke pushed aside his thoughts of adventure and shook his head. "Look, I can take you as far as Anchorhead. You can get a transport there to Alderaan or wherever you're going."

The old man closed his eyes, defeat heavy as it crashed into him. "You must do what you feel is right, of course."

* * *

The spherical station purred as it moved slowly through the vast expanse of space, the white noise an anchor for Vader's ruminating mind. In one hand, he slowly twirled the confiscated lightsaber, diving into its secrets.

It was fairly fresh in its crafting, the crystal ablaze with youthful energy that his blade could no longer muster. It was not some old relic, then, which spawned the question 'who'. The Jedi were dead, he had been responsible for so many deaths himself. So many…except one. The one that truly mattered; the one that had been the final nail in his coffin as Vader: _Obi-Wan Kenobi._

It had been so long since the dark lord thought of his former Jedi master that the name seemed foreign to him.

But this weapon did not belong to Obi-Wan, the Force told him. The heart of the Jedi that made this blade was full of blind optimism and hope. Kenobi had been through too much to feel that way now.

Then the Jedi had found a new apprentice?

Vader would have laughed if he had the ability. What did that old fool think a single youngling would do? Was Kenobi trying to restart the order from his secret hiding place? Did he hope to bring an army of blue and green wielding children to the Sith and strike master and apprentice down?

As sarcastic as the thoughts were, anger bubbled within him at the possibility, old loyalties that had never fully severed burning at the thought. Kenobi was going to betray him again, come after him again, ruin everything again! Why couldn't the old man just curl up and die like the rest of the Jedi?

Vader seethed. If Kenobi was planning such a revolt, Vader would slaughter them all and finally would wipe his master from the galaxy.

His fingers tightened around the saber and the Force presence of the crystal seemed to scream at his domineering nature. He turned his attention back to it. He would start with this one.

Vader was certain the princess was not the one who carried the blade after all. The handmaiden, however, was a much clearer possibility. Though it had been fleeting, he had felt her draw on the Force. She was not only sensitive, she was trained. How much, still remained a mystery.

He rose, slow and steady in his determination. The princess needed to be dealt with first – the plans had not yet been located – but the Jedi would be his dessert.

 _ **To be continued…**_


	6. Darth Vader

**Chapter 5: Darth Vader**

She nearly through her tongue as her jaw snapped close on the scream building within her. Leia's lungs begged for release from the breath she instinctively held, the raw agony of the mind probe's "interrogation" racking her slim form.

Vader raised his hand for pause and the princess slumped over gasping wildly in the small reprieve. This was not torture in the common sense; Vader used no lashes or brands, she had no broken bones or cuts to mar her skin. In all appearances, she seemed just fine.

But she would hardly call herself that. The mind probe, a vicious spherical droid that seemed designed to appear as menacing as the dark lord himself, raped her mind without care, delving for the firing neurons that would answer Vader's questions.

Each session spread acid through her mind, arching into her blood and tearing her apart. Visions of her memories flashed before her eyes, corrupted by the pain. Her mother's sweet laughter turned vile, the soft feel of the fresh grasses were now as spikes beneath her feet. Her heart broke under the torment before her mind did. If Vader knew, he didn't care.

"The more you resist, princess," he said slowly, "the harder it will be."

She noted that he seemed not at all perturbed by how hard it would be.

Forcing her head up, Leia stared at him. It took too much effort to hold this position and the muscles in her neck trembled, but she did not break contact. Not even as her vision swam and she felt her consciousness slipping away. "I will never betray the Alliance _._ " Her voice came as a hoarse whisper but Vader heard it well enough in the small chamber.

"Very well." He waved the droid forward again and Leia couldn't repress the icy fear at the sight of its long, glinting needle inching toward her skull. She pressed herself against the metal walls, screwed her eyes tight and despite her attempts, let out a strangled cry as the droid stabbed the offending arm into her temples.

"Where is the Rebel Base?" Vader growled out as much as his vocalizer would allow.

The droid launched its investigation once again and this time Leia could not hold back her cries. The aptly named droid stabbed and prodded internally, and externally with supplemental barbs, digging for the answers its master desired.

Leia arched and struggled against the assault but Vader's power held her firm. Oh, how it made things worse to be unable to move, to flee even in some small respect, from the torture. Her screams echoed louder, her shame and weakness grew, her tears ran freely, each feeding back into the absolute helplessness threatening to consume her. All she could hold to was that her death would continue to ensure the rebellion's survival. She clung to the thought like an anchor for her sanity.

 _xxxxx_

Even through her walls against the Force, Ariala felt Leia's struggle, albeit muffled and diluted. The princess's rhythm in the Force jumped and dipped in violent staccatos, sharp and heavy notes replacing the normally smooth strings. She had only felt such intense changes in animals desperately drawing what would eventually be their last breath. Leia was beyond pain, beyond anguish – she was breaking and whatever Vader was doing to her was going to kill the girl.

Ariala's breath clogged in her throat. She could help. She knew could. Give him a Jedi and the rebels lost importance.

A small voice in the back of her mind cautioned her foolishness but Leia's Force-screams made up the Jedi's mind. She dropped her mental shielding, welcoming the full flow of the Force to surround her while shaking under Leia's misery. Pushing it aside, much to her own displeasure, Ariala reached out for the terrifying darkness that was Vader's spirit, crashing into it. _Look at me!_ The action screamed. _Look at me, Vader!_

 _xxxxx_

The uncorrupted light side of the Force collided against Vader, a scorching wave that reminded him too much of the lava that once ate him alive. He turned his own senses to the Force and smiled darkly under his helmet. Behind the glittering raw power, he felt anger, worry, fear – the seedlings of the dark side. His interest in the little Jedi was paramount now. Without a word to his droid, he stepped from the room.

Like a proper servant, the machine stopped suddenly and withdrew. Leia, trembling watched. She wanted to know why, wanted to goad him that she had won – out lasted his limited patience – but she was too close to the brink of consciousness. As the door slipped close behind the droid, the princess faded into blackness.

 _xxxxx_

"Vader!" The Sith steamed at the Grand Moff's sudden call. He slowed his pace, allowing the aged man to catch up. "Have you extracted the location of the rebel base?"

"Her resistance to the mind probe is considerable. It will be some time before we can extract any information from her."

Tarkin scoffed. "We hardly have an abundance of time. The longer the plans for this station are in the hands of the rebels – "

Vader cut him off with a wave. "The princess may be difficult, but she is not the only prisoner we have."

"The handmaiden?! Really, Vader, you think someone of her position would know anything?"

Vader's fingers twitched and he wished so desperately that this man was not so deeply embedded in the emperor's favor. It would be so easy to snap that wrinkled neck.

Before he could answer, a brave – or foolish – command officer stepped before them. "Sirs, the final check-out is complete. All systems are operational."

Tarkin's face twisted into a sneer and Vader could see his strategic mind rapidly forming a plan. "Forget the maid. Perhaps the princess would respond to an alternative form of persuasion." He rounded on the officer. "Set your course for Alderaan. I think it is time we demonstrate the full power of this station."

* * *

The old speeder rushed across the landscape, Luke pushing it to its full power. The smoldering remains of a Jawa sandcrawler, which he and Ben had come across on their way to Anchorhead, was still permanently etched into his eyes. But right now, he could hardly care about the mangled bodies of the greedy traders; they were dead now and the next targets were much closer to his heart.

 _The troopers weren't after the Jawas, Luke._ Ben's words echoed around the cold pit in his chest. _They were after the droids._ The vaporators that formed the unofficial sign-post of the Lars farm whipped past him in quick succession and he forced the transport to slow, still nearly skidding to a halt before the main house.

At first, Luke prayed it was dust, sprayed into the air by his sudden stop that drifted, dark, over the plain, but he knew better even as he leapt from the cockpit and stumbled forward. The black smoke was still hot, evidence of fire, and the air rippled in its heat. He could smell it next: the char of whatever had been caught in the conflagration, putrid and stinging. He took another terrified step forward and the wind shifted to clear his vision.

The bodies still sizzled like meat forgotten on a grill, the blackened bones of his aunt and uncle clawing into the sand. Luke felt he could still hear the way they must have screamed as the flames ate away at their clothes, skin, muscles, and hair. He felt his stomach turn and heave but he was too shell-shocked to react. He only gaped.

The imperial troopers were supposed to be protectors, enforcers at most, for the power of the empire. Not murders! His aunt and uncle knew nothing. They had barely interacted with the droids and Owen respected authority too much to have given a fight. Why…why had they been killed?

His knees suddenly buckled as it hit him, and he fell to the sand with a soft thud. They had been killed. They were _dead._ Gone in the most everlasting way and they had suffered. And he hadn't been here. And oh stars, his last words, so full of anger, cursing the very people who gave him shelter, life, and love.

Weakly, he stretched his hand toward the house. "Uncle Owen…Aunt Beru…I'm sorry…I'm so sorry."

How long he sat there, giving his final farewell, Luke didn't know, but when he stood his heavy heart slowly teemed with purpose. He glanced back once more to the last of his family, last of his ties to Tatooine, before turning to his speeder and putting it all behind him.

 _xxxxx_

Luke was not entirely surprised to see Ben and the criminal droids still picking about the rubble of the sandcrawler. In his selfish worry, he had run off with their only means of transportation, leaving the trio stranded in the middle of nowhere.

Ben glanced up as the youth arrived and felt the sadness cloaking the boy's mind. "There was nothing you could have done Luke," Ben said as the young boy walked over. "Had you been there you would have been killed and the droids - with the plans they carry - would be in the hands of the empire."

Luke watched him blankly. "I want to come with you to Alderaan." He took a pause. "There's nothing here for me now. I want to learn the ways of the Force and become a Jedi like my father."

For a second, Ben did not respond. He may have already lost one of Padme's children in his haste, was taking another truly the right path? "If you go to seek vengeance, Luke - "

"I'm not after revenge," he cut in. "At least not like that. I'll go with you to Alderaan, I'll become a Jedi, join up with the rebellion and put a stop to them hurting anyone ever again."

"Very well," Ben gave in with a nod, joining Luke and the droids in the speeder.

* * *

Bobbing up from the black ocean of her unconscious state was nearly as bad as falling into it. Leia's body, which had grown stiff while lying so still, groaned and creaked as she pulled herself up to lean weakly against the walls. She had no idea how long she had been out but the fact that Vader had not returned was no comfort. Whatever drew him away was bound to be worse news for her.

Did she let something slip? Had the rebellion been found? Was Vader gloating in his success? She wracked her screaming brain but could only pull down the memories of her pain.

"I have to get out of here…" She looked around the seamless room that lacked even a commode and growled. The door was the only way out and it only opened from the outside. Not even an echo of the control console existed on the interior. Picking a lock or popping out through a vent were out of the question.

A small recorder watched her from the far left corner. She wondered if she could fake need for assistance but the thought fled as quickly as it came. She had been a slobbering, limp mess but clearly no one cared. If the feed was even monitored, no one was coming to check on her. No, she was Vader's special prisoner. Even if she were in real danger, no one would risk crossing the towering Sith to aid her.

Leia growled again and pushed herself to sit on the bench. She was slowly coming back to herself and fate seemed to know it. Just as she sighed, relaxing herself on the seat, the door slid open again and a horde of troopers greeted her. Just behind them, she spotted Vader.

The princess smirked with false bravado. "And here I thought you'd gotten bored."

The Sith gave no response. Troopers spilled into the room, boxing her in by their sheer numbers, and snapped her trembling wrists once again in the metal bonds. "Where are you taking me?"

The soldiers pushed her from the room without response.

As they walked, Leia struggled to piece together any clue, any memory that may have told her why she was being dragged about again. She was fairly certain she hadn't given Vader anything, or else he would have been quite clear in his dominance over her. This had to be another plan, another method to draw the location from her. But what more could he do after literally taking her mind apart?

Ari. What had they done with Ari?

Leia's blood ran cold. After the princess had been dragged from the room, Leia hadn't heard anything about her. Was she dead? Had she been tortured as well? Was this Vader's sadistic trip to show the princess her maiden's broken corpse?

The princess's heart shook at the possibilities, dread replacing pain in her limbs. She was almost giddy with relief when she was lead instead to the bridge and faced with the aging Governor.

"Governor Tarkin, I should have expected to find you holding Vader's leash. I recognized your foul stench when I was brought on board." Leia said to the old man standing before her. This she could handle. He was a political mind with the proper bite to match his bark, but only human.

"Charming to the last. You don't know how hard I found it signing the order to terminate your life!"

"I'm surprised you had the courage to take the responsibility yourself!"

Tarkin only chuckled at the barb. "Princess Leia, before your execution I would like you to be my guest at a ceremony that will make this battle station operational. No star system will dare oppose the emperor now."

"The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers."

"Not after we demonstrate the power of this station. In a way, you have determined the choice of the planet that'll be destroyed first. Since you are reluctant to provide us with the location of the Rebel base, I have chosen to test this station's destructive power... on your home planet of Alderaan."

"No!" The cold dread swept through her again, mingling with hot anger. She pulled against her captors, though had she gotten free she had not a clue what she would do. "Alderaan is peaceful. We have no weapons. You can't possibly - "

"You would prefer another target? A military target? Then name the system!" Tarkin drove further into his bet.

There was a pause filled only by the sound of Vader's breathing and the intercom announcement stating the approach to Alderaan.

"I grow tired of asking this," the governor continued. "So it'll be the last time. Where is the Rebel base?"

Leia remained silent and Tarkin, with a cavalier sigh, raised his hand to gesture the OK to fire.

"Dantooine." Leia dropped her head. "They're on Dantooine".

"There. You see Lord Vader, she can be reasonable." Tarkin nodded toward the firing officer. "Continue with the operation. You may fire when ready."

"What?" Leia rushed forward only to be pulled back by the Sith Lord.

"You're far too trusting." Tarkin answered with a smile. "Dantooine is too remote to make an effective demonstration. But don't worry. We will deal with your Rebel friends soon enough."

"No!"

With the pulling of a few levers and the pressing of a number of buttons a beam of light emanated from the Death Star, penetrating the unaware planet and exploding it from within.

Leia looked on in disbelieving horror as her home, an entire glittering planet nearly triple the size of the small station, was instantly obliterated, leaving only a litter of asteroids that floated too calmly away.

"Prepare scout ships for a trip to Dantooine." Tarkin said giving the princess his signature smirk.

* * *

The moment the station had entered Alderaan's familiar Force grasp, Ariala knew something was wrong. The Force rocked with displeasure and she felt the same threat of death that seemed so vague only days before. Now it screamed clearly in her mind. Alderaan…Alderaan was going to die. She could barely believe it as the Force begged her to understand but she knew it to be true. Not just the soldiers, or rebels, or royals, but everyone – everything – was shadowed in Death.

She launched to her feet, fists banging on the door, senses pulling at the gears and levers that kept it locked. The door hissed as it resisted her, locks built to last a thousand blaster shots groaning as they were peeled aside. The hallway appeared beyond in slivers, but it was so slow. Too slow…too long.

The Force was suddenly snatched from her as it collapsed, for just a second, in despair and she cried out as the feeling rocketed through her. Here, beside the very cause of the disturbance, she felt the planet's dying scream, the sudden end as it was destroyed and gone, a void in the power that surrounded them. The Jedi fell to her knees, body struggling to follow her mind's direction. She had been too close, too connected with the Force when it happened and now she could hardly separate herself from it. Everything swimming in the connective power latched on to her, pulling her spirit into its folds. She grasped wildly for anything familiar, any sign of her proper self.

She felt Leia, shell-shocked, her guilt paramount on her mind. Ariala pulled herself into it and the feeling became her own. Her body collapsed entirely to the floor, ajar door forgotten, hope draining with each passing second.

* * *

Luke stood tensely in the small hold area of the old junker ship, his father's lightsaber drawn and poised against the fist-sized spherical droid sizing him up. It twitched, hovering this way and that, and Luke followed in jerky motions.

Beside a small console that monitored the ship's autopilot progress, Ben and their pirate-smuggler-pilot Han Solo, watched with mixed levels of amusement.

"Remember," Ben coached calmly. "A Jedi can feel the Force flowing through him."

"You mean it controls your actions?" Luke's eyes only flickered to the old man, his main attention still intensely focused on the ball.

"Partially, but is also obeys your commands."

Luke nodded, though Ben could see he had not really understood. The droid found its opening and with a lightning-swift lunge it fired a single red blaster bolt, stinging Luke's leg as he tried vainly to block it.

Han did not bother to hide his laughter. "Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid."

Luke glared at him as he massaged his leg, embarrassment obvious on his face. "You don't believe in the Force, do you?"

Han scoffed, his signature crooked smile answering before he spoke. "Kid, I've flown from one side of this galaxy to the other. I've seen a lot of strange stuff, but I've never seen anything to make me believe there's one all-powerful force controlling everything. There's no mystical energy field that controls my destiny."

From the other side of the room came a low growl of agreement. Ben smiled at the towering Wookie, Han's copilot, currently engaged in a holographic game against R2-D2. Up until recently, the droid had been winning but on threat of losing his limbs, he had tempered his skills to allow Chewbacca to pull ahead.

Ben stood, undeterred by the lack of belief in their transporters, and took a fighter helmet from the wall. "I suggest you try it again, Luke. Except," he placed the helmet on Luke, the thick shielding lowered over his eyes. "This time, let go of your conscious self and act on instinct."

Luke tossed his head, laughing now with his own disbelief. "With the blast shield down, I can't even see. How am I supposed to fight?"

"Your eyes can deceive you. Don't trust them." Ben backed away and the training droid took his place, once again hovering and rotating around the youth. "Stretch out with your feelings."

Han, despite himself, looked on in mild interest.

Luke sighed, ready to feel the repeated bite of the droid's attack, and raised the saber once more. As much as he tried, he could not see beyond the shield and gave in, closing his eyes, putting every sense on high alert. He could hear the whirring of the engines as they pumped the group through hyperspace, smell the distinctive scent of musk and fragrance that accompanied Han like a cloak (Chewbacca, he thought, actually smelled better despite being covered in the thick brown mane commonplace amongst his species), and feel the air that flowed through the vents sustaining their life in the vacuum of space.

But more importantly, he felt, tickling the back of his mind, the position of the damnable droid, twisting slightly to counter it. The droid fired and Luke reacted, twisting the blade in quick succession, successfully deflecting three rapid attacks.

"You see, you can do it," came Ben's voice as confirmation and Luke pulled off the helmet, beaming.

Han scoffed again, rolling his eyes. So much for a good show. "I call it luck."

"In my experience," Ben answered, though he seemed to be speaking more to Luke than to the pilot, "there's no such thing as luck."

Something about these two rubbed him the wrong way and Han retorted, "Look, going good against remotes is one thing. Going good against the living? That's something else."

Pleasantly, a small beeping on the console drew his attention before he could say anything else on the matter. "Looks like we're coming up on Alderaan." He stood, jerking his head in Chewbacca's direction, as they moved to the cockpit.

Like the rest of the ship, the cockpit was a cramped mash of hastily completed repairs and loose wiring. Two mismatched, sunken seats were installed behind the pilot chairs, and it was into these Ben and Luke sat, watching the webbed window for the grand reveal.

The starlight evened out as they dropped to sub-light engines, Luke eagerly leaning forward, only to be rocked back in his seat, grateful for Ben's steadying hand. Asteroids blazed past them, several knocking the ship – or the ship knocking into them, the storm too condensed for the Falcon to maneuver.

Chewbacca roared in annoyance, Han suddenly taking the controls. "We've come out into a meteor shower. Some kind of asteroid collision. It's not on any of the charts."

"What's going on?" Luke screamed at the same time, gripping his chair. It wobbled uncomfortably beneath him, seemingly ready to go flying off at any second.

"Our position is correct, except, no Alderaan."

"What? Where is it?"

"That's what I'm trying to tell you kid," he snapped back. This was not the ideal time for a backseat driver. "It ain't there. It's been totally blown away."

In the seat behind Chewbacca, Ben felt his heart sink. Then the great disturbance he had felt earlier had originated here. Somehow, Alderaan was gone. He pushed aside the darker thoughts of what that meant and focused on the problem at hand. Luke was still confused, his 'what' and 'how' echoing everyone's thoughts.

"Destroyed, by the empire."

 _This old man is crazy!_ "The entire Starfleet couldn't destroy the whole planet," Han shot back irritably, only just clearing the edges of the shower. "It'd take a thousand ships with more fire power - " the rest of his argument was cut off as the proximity alarm flashed a warning. "There's another ship coming in." His expression darkened. "It's an Imperial fighter."

As if to prove itself, the small TIE fighter fired before speeding past, the explosion bursting outside the cockpit window and again sending the ship rocking violently.

The panic in the cockpit doubled, Luke shouting about being followed only for Ben to shoot him down. "No, it's a short-range fighter."

Han scoured the ships radar. "There aren't any bases around here. Where did it come from?"

The fighter was already a fading dot on the sky, Luke nervously watching as it darted Han's attempts to move closer, Chewbacca alternating between firing upon it and trying to jam any possible transmissions it may be sending.

The young boy, adrenaline pumping watched as it ran. "He's headed for that small moon."

Just before the ship, orbiting the space where Alderaan once stood, they group watched in growing incredulity as the 'moon' Luke pointed to, came into clearer focus revealing the cold metal sides of an artificial construct.

The Force screamed at the old Jedi. "That's no moon. It's a space station."

The ship shuddered suddenly, engines and hull grinding as they revved without response.

"We're caught in a tractor beam!" Han shouted, curses on the tip of his tongue. "It's pulling us in." He shook his shaggy head, scowling at the odds of actually escaping that thing out there. "There's nothing I can do about it. I'm in full power. I'm going to have to shut down, but they're not going to get me without a fight."

He nearly jumped as Ben laid a calming hand on his shoulder. "You can't win," he said knowingly. "But there are alternatives to fighting."

 _xxxxx_

Chewbacca grunted and huffed angrily as his massive bulk was crammed against the slim walls of the secret cargo hold.

"Shut up you walking mop," came Han's voice just behind him, the pilot nearly buried under the Wookie's hair. Beside him, Luke rolled his eyes. He didn't quite like this either, but he had to admit it seemed a better plan than going up against an entire Imperial base.

As though ever in contrast with the boy, Han grumbled, "I hope the old man's plan works or they'll be shooting us like fish in a barrel."

Silently, Luke agreed.

Ben, and the droids, were stashed in an adjoining hold, 3PO as much of a grump as Chewbacca. To ensure his silence, the older man had shut the droid down, the limp metal figure folded against the far wall.

The ship shuddered as it was dragged to the hangar, landing gear slipping into place. The group fell into tense silence.

Ben exhaled slowly, extending tentative investigating waves into the Force. The station buzzed with life, thousands strong, but his care of them slipped away in the face of the two frighteningly familiar spirits of his former pupils. Vader and Ari were here. His heart vaulted and sunk in rapid succession. She had not perished on Alderaan but her fate seemed worse all the same. Vader stirred with endless anger and she wavered with tragedy. The Sith's overbearing presence would have blotted the young Jedi out all together but Ben knew her light too well to be blind to it. He resisted the urge to reach out to her fully, settling instead on sending hope and warmth to her broken heart.

His attention was suddenly drawn to the problem at hand as footsteps echoed throughout the now vacant halls, Imperial soldiers, no doubt, conducting a sweep of the ship. The patter faded, tense silence fell again, then, they returned once more, staying several agonizing minutes. Finally, he heard them, _there's nothing here,_ and the heavy steps faded away.

The scrape of the other metal hatch opening, served as his cue and Ben slowly popped up from the hidden compartment.

"I use this for smuggling," Han complained as he emerged behind Luke. "Never thought I'd be smuggling myself." He pulled himself out, resting on the ledge created by the opening. "This is ridiculous; even if I could take off, I'd never get past that tractor beam."

Ben snagged the opportunity with more fervor than he intended. "Leave that to me."

"I was worried you'd say that."

The four scrambled the rest of the way out of the holds just as two officers boarded, lugging a massive scanner. Ambushed by the crew, the officers stood little chance, and as Ben had predicted, the clatter of the attack drew the armored troopers aboard. It was little effort to subdue the duo, steal their armor and slip into the station proper. Within minutes, they had secured themselves in the control room, R2 scanning the main computer.

Suddenly, the little droid beeped and whooped, a tone of success in his vocalizations.

"He says he's found the main computer to power the tractor beam," 3PO translated as blinking maps flashed on the screen before them. "The tractor beam is coupled to the main reactor in seven locations. A power loss at one of the terminals will allow the ship to leave."

Ben studied the readout on the monitor, plotting his course, before turning to leave. "I don't think you boys can help. I must go alone."

He brushed away Luke's protests and slipped beyond the door, swift and stealthily for his age.

In truth, he could not have risked Luke's reaction should he accompany the Jedi. Ben would deactivate the tractor beam, that was an important task, but he had a private mission. His child was here and he would save her. Luke would have had too many questions and been too much of a distraction. As it was, he dreaded the reunion for the truths it could reveal to the boy. _But that is a later problem,_ he thought as he side stepped a patrol. First, he had to find her.

 _xxxxx_

R2's sudden joyous beeping, breaking the hostility fuming between Luke and Han, startled them both, 3PO's confused whispering drawing Luke over. "What is it?"

"I'm afraid I'm not quite sure, sir. He says 'I found her' and keeps repeating 'she's here'."

"Who has he found?"

The little droid whistled a frantic reply, and even 3PO had a note of surprise in his voice as he responded, "Princess Leia."

* * *

Ariala drew yet another shaky breath. Her trepidation eased, certainty taking its place. Despite her intense confusion at the how, she could no longer deny what she felt. Ben was here. His gentle comfort gave her strength, and his arrival, nervous hope. Why he had come, what he was doing, and how he came to be here were questions she could ask when she saw him.

The Jedi extended her own presence to him, careful of Vader's ever omnipresent consciousness, creating a beacon to her location. With the other part of her mind, she reached to Leia, giving the Princess the same courage Ben reignited in her.

 _xxxxx_

Vader strode with purpose through the station's winding halls, a hunter following the trail left by his prey. Obi-Wan's presence glimmered to him as well; he was not going to lose this opportunity. Now _he_ had the high ground, the control; Obi-Wan would fall today.

* * *

The gray elevator whirled as it began its controlled downfall. On board, the two storm troopers flanked the towering wookie, blasters poised on him. Chewbacca turned calmly to the trooper at his left and growled softly.

"Don't worry, Chewie," the trooper responded, Han's voice only slightly modulated through the helmet. "If this works we'll have enough money to pay off Jabba and live in the luxury we deserve."

Chewbacca growled in what they decided to take as agreement as the second trooper shook his head.

"Han, help me loosen these bonds." Luke's youthful voice ran in stark comparison the imposing armor.

Han stepped over, gloved fingers tripping over the lock. "Why'd I let you talk me into this…?"

"Maybe because you want to do the right thing for once?"

Han nearly laughed. "I only do the right think when it pays the right price." The lock on Chewbacca's manacles popped loose and he arranged them in the wookie's long hair.

Luke inspected the work before stepping back as well. "Whatever. Just get ready."

Han fell silent, a rare second. Then, just before the door slid opened, he muttered "this isn't going to work."

The officers of the command station, a small handful of stiffly dressed men, stared as they entered. A few eyed Chewbacca warily.

"Where are you taking this…thing?"

"Prisoner transfer from Cell Block 1138."

"I wasn't notified. I'll have to clear it." The commander waved his hand at a couple of guards, who moved toward them, blasters raised. At that moment, Chewbacca separated his arms roaring loudly, catching the nearest guard with his wild swing.

The room exploded in blaster fire and panic, the disguised troopers feigning surprise as Chewbacca raged on the motley defense. The confusion worked in the infiltrator's favor, shots ricocheting from walls concealing the intentionally aimed bolts that took down the officers. Silence fell quickly back to the room and Han bolted to the alarming console, ripping off his helmet.

"We've got to find out which cell this princess of yours is in…" he skimmed the log quickly. "Here it is...cell 2187. You go get her. I'll hold them here."

Luke nodded and raced down the hall, leaving Han to worry about the still beeping console. "Everything is under control." He spoke into the comlink, the beeping falling silent as the call was finally answered. "Situation normal."

The commander on the other end seemed less than pleased. "What happened?"

"Uh..." Han looked around at the room "had a slight weapons malfunction. But, uh, everything's perfectly all right now. We're fine. We're all fine here, now, thank you. How are you?"

"We're sending a squad up."

"Uh, uh, negative. We had a reactor leak here now. Give us a few minutes to lock it down. Large leak...very dangerous."

"Who is this?" The man over the intercom asked suspiciously. "What's your operating number?"

Han looked around desperately before grabbing his blaster and firing at the console until it smoked. "Boring conversation anyway." He turned to look down the hall. "Luke! We're going to have company!"

Luke – still clad in the stormtrooper uniform - nodded just as he reached the door marked 2187. Pressing a button on the console, the door slid open. It wasn't his intention to stare, but Leia in real life was much more…fascinating…than the little holographic projection. He stepped in rather slowly, startling her from her obviously light sleep.

Leia stuffed away the immediate fear the gripped her at the sight on the trooper, determined not to let him see her break. She propped herself on her arm, lying in faux comfort on the steely surface. "Aren't you little short to be a stormtrooper?"

Her voice shook Luke from his stupor. "What? Oh! The uniform." Luke pulled off his helmet and eagerly stepped forward. "I'm Luke Skywalker. I'm here to rescue you."

She adjusted again, not yet ready to believe the boy. Vader and Tarkin were not above such a ruse. Still, something about him, gave her enough pause to ask, "You're who?"

"I'm here to rescue you. I've got your R2 unit. I'm here with Ben Kenobi." At the mention of Ben, Leia jumped from the bench, the first signs of relief flooding her. "Ben Kenobi! Where is he?" Leia was already racing from the room before Luke could answer.

"Wait." She skidded to a stop, wheeling back on the boy. "We have to get my friend."

Luke jerked back, nearly bowling the smaller figure over. "Where is she? What cell?"

She shook her head. "I don't know. We were separated as soon as we got here. But I know she's still alive. We have to find her."

"Okay, we'll check the log files." He hooked an arm under Leia's spurring her to move again through the short, twisting passageway.

The sound of the elevator door creaking greeted them as they rounded the final corridor, Han and Chewbacca tucked in the corners. "Get behind me! They're coming."

The door burst off its hinges, troopers pouring from the smoke cloud into the small room. Han and Chewbacca fired back blindly, Luke just barely registering the danger before raising his own blaster.

"Can't get out that way."

"Looks like you managed to cut off our only escape route," Leia shot back over the din.

"Maybe you'd like it back in your cell, Your Highness." Han retaliated.

Luke rolled his eyes firing at the troops before hiding behind a wall post and taking out a small comlink. "C-3PO! C-3PO!"

"Yes sir?"

"We've been cut off! Are there any other ways out of the cell bay?" A chorus of blast drowned out the droid's response "What was that? I didn't copy!"

 **"** I said, all systems have been alerted to your presence, sir. The main entrance seems to be the only way in or out; all other information on your level is restricted."

"There isn't any other way out!" Luke shouted to Han over the sound of the blasters.

"I can't hold them off forever! Now what?"

Leia rolled her eyes. "This is some rescue. When you came in here, didn't you have a plan for getting out?"

"He's the brains, sweetheart." Han nodded to Luke who grinned sheepishly and shrugged.

"Well, I didn't..."

The princess sighed and grabbed Luke's gun. She fired at a small grate the in the wall next to Han, the shock causing the pilot to turn around, a foul stench assaulting his nostrils.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Somebody has to save our skins. Into the garbage chute, wise guy." Leia jumped through the narrow opening as Han and Chewbacca looked on in amazement. Chewbacca sniffed the garbage chute and roared in complaint.

"Get in there, you big, furry, oaf! I don't care what you smell! Get in there and don't worry about it." Giving the wookie a good kick he toppled down the chute leaving Han and Luke above him.

"Wonderful girl! Either I'm going to kill her or I'm beginning to like her. Get in there!"

Luke ducked behind his companion and dived into the shaft. Once he had disappeared Han turned and followed him headfirst.

* * *

Obi-Wan slunk silently around an empty corner, following the force trail his apprentice had opened. The tractor beam was disabled, the single powered-down reactor seeming to raise no alarm. Now he made his way around and down toward the prison levels. In the back of his mind, he made careful note of Vader as well. Obi-Wan knew better than to think he would go unnoticed by the Sith, and the part of him that so deeply regretted all that happened back then welcomed the Dark Lord to find him. If he could do both, rescue his dear Ari and strike Vader from the emperor's grasp he would take the opening.

He darted down an emergency hatch and pressed on.

* * *

The escape from the death-trap that was the garbage chute left Han more than grumpy and the princess's vile attitude was just about the last straw. As she turned away from him, her last retort still ringing in the air, he contemplated letting her continue to stroll off in the wrong direction. Only the vague promise of his reward loosened his tongue.

"Excuse me your esteemed greatness, but the hanger is that way."

"We're not going to the hanger yet." Leia paused and looked over Han's shoulder to the young by behind him. "Luke, right? Have R2 read the logs and find out where my friend is."

Luke nodded and pulled out the comlink speaking into it while Han pulled the princess aside.

"What do you mean we aren't going to the hanger?"

"Exactly what I said."

"I know that. _WHY_ aren't we going there?"

"Because, we are rescuing my friend."

"No way. I'm not going through that again. She can get her own rescue party. I've done more than I've agreed to already. And unless – "

"She came onboard with me. She's leaving with me."

"I'm not going on a wild chase. You want to find her, you go and do it, but you better find your own way off this space station."

"Han that's stupid," Luke interrupted and turned the man towards him. "You won't get the reward if you leave her."

"No reward is worth this." The pilot gritted his teeth and turned back to face the princess shocked to find her already walking off.

"See, she doesn't care."

"Han…"

"No, kid." Suddenly an explosion of blaster fire caught their attention and they rushed forward finding Leia in the midst of twenty or more stormtroopers. Sighing Han grabbed the girls arm and pulled her back with one hand while firing wildly in to the crowd with the other. Behind him Luke and Chewie were doing the same.

When they had finally reached a safe point, Han rounded on Leia angrily. "Do you want to get yourself recaptured?!"

"I was trying to-"

"I know what you were trying to do and I already told you: we're not getting her!"

"I don't need your help!"

"And just how do you plan to get out of here once you find her. _If_ you find her. Think your highness. The prison block must be crawling with Imps by now. There's no way we're getting back there alive. "

"Han, we have to at least try." Once again Luke interrupted the feud between the two.

"You too, huh?" the captain threw up his arms in exasperation and began walking down the hall that lead to his ship. "What did I miss this time?"

Luke followed, if only to keep their conversation going. "Nothing. Just -" he glanced at Leia and shrugged. "I mean we're already here…"

The smuggler groaned, realizing he was outnumbered. "Do I get a reward for her too?"

"If that's all you care about," Leia said. "Yes."

Han looked between the two and sighed. "So, what's the plan for-" He was suddenly cut off as they ran in to yet another horde of troopers.

"It's them! Blast them!" Acting as he usually did, Han drew and blaster and began charging the troopers firing at their backs. Ever loyal to his friend and captain, Chewbacca followed. "Find your friend then get back to the ship!" Han yelled as he rounded the corner.

"He certainly has courage," Leia said watching him break away.

Luke rolled his eyes, leading them down the opposite hall. "What good will it do us if he gets himself killed?"

* * *

The prison level buzzed with activity as Obi-Wan descended the last rungs of the hatch. Hidden behind the access door, he watched as officers and common troopers paraded down the crimson walkways, soldiers stationed at every entrance, exit, and cell.

A tittering droid worked on the still smoldering console under the watchful eyes of the chief mechanic. The Jedi sighed. In his younger days it would have been an easy task to break through their lines and force his way in. Now, however, he had to be smarter. He focused his attention on the commander pacing before destroyed main door, tapping his mind with the Force.

 _You must check on the other Alderaanian prisoner._

The man froze in his pacing, turning stiffly on his heel. "I must check on the other Alderaanian prisoner." He repeated, barking the words to no one particular. He took off down the hall, two troopers falling behind him.

Obi-Wan reached out once more before he was too far away. _She needs to be moved to a different base before the rebels come for her. You will escort her yourself._

The commander repeated the words, his authoritative tone keeping anyone from questioning the sudden decision.

Obi-Wan watched as he, alone, walked down the hall before shimmying his way back up the hatch and heading for the main hangar. Force be with him, he would reach the commander before anyone else and simply pluck his apprentice from his willing grasp.

* * *

The alarms blared through her small room, though the commotion that caused them came only through muffled blaster shots, pinging above. It faded after a moment, the thudding footsteps of a contingent of troopers melting away. The alarm was silenced shortly after.

Ariala sat anxiously, watching the door. Someone was clearly attempting an escape and she worried that Ben was now being chased through the monstrosity that was the Death Star. Nervously, she tugged the tether that lead to her master and sighed with relief. He was close but, as far as she could tell, undetected. Then what was going on?

Ariala did not have time to find out, as the door to her cell slid open and she stared into the face of Detention Commander Jeffoar. "Get up, rebel."

She tensed, surprised to see him unaccompanied and without binders, only to relax as the echo of Ben's power played in her senses. Her lips twitched to a smile as she stood, presenting an air of compliance.

Jeffoar tugged her roughly by the arm, leading her through the bustling command center. As the lift sped down to meet them, the Jedi could barely contain her excitement. Her escape seemed inevitable.

Just before the door slid open, the Force screamed a warning, and her hope dashed.

Governor Tarkin, whom she had only ever seen in hologram form accompanied by official decrees, glared at her from the lift. His already dark face twisted in rage as he took in the scene.

"What do you think you're doing, commander?" He spat.

Jeffoar snapped to attention. "I must move the prisoner, sir, before the rebels locate her."

"Move her?! Where did you get such a foolish - " He leveled his dark gaze on the girl, quickly piecing together a story. Vader had only recently alerted him to the fact that the old Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi was aboard the ship. It was no coincidence that he came at the same time the rebels stole the princess from beneath his nose. That utter failure on the detention commander's part was the precise reason he came here and now the man was about to hand yet another rebel away.

He scowled and snatched Ariala's free arm, jerking her out of Jeffoar's grip.

"You feeble-minded imbecile you've been manipulated by the rogue Jedi." He turned to the staring troopers. "Get him out of here!" He pushed Ariala into their midst. "And secure her."

* * *

Despite the madness of the station, Vader stood, with rare patience in the corridor that lead to the main hangar, bloodshot lightsaber drawn. Even without the aid of the Force, he knew Obi-Wan had no choice but to come this way seeking the single rebel ship for escape. The air in the hall seemed to waver under his anticipation, feeling the old man draw ever closer to his final moments.

When Obi-Wan rounded the corner, he could not help the grin that broke across his face.

"I've been waiting for you, Obi-Wan."

Obi-Wan drew his own saber, the blue beam illuminating his face. He had not laid eyes on the brute Palpatine had turned his former student into, and the towering black menace before him bared little resemblance to the Anakin he had left on Mustafar.

As though reading his thoughts, Vader spoke again. "I am no longer that boy. My power is complete. This will not play out the same." He raised his blade, falling into a simple stance. "Now I am the master."

"Only a master of evil, Vader."

Obi-Wan watched, noting the weight to Vader's movement. The mechsuit made the Sith heavy and inflexible, just as Obi-Wan's age made him slow. They were different now, and their last battle left scars deeper than the body; neither were willing to rush in this time. Obi-Wan drew himself up, stretching his muscles. This would not be a fight of speed and strength, but of patience and opportunity. He stepped forward, circling Vader just as the Sith moved the same, blades parted by only a few inches.

Vader struck first. A parry to disarm. The Jedi met it and the sabers fizzled as they kissed. Vader pulled back and now Obi-Wan attacked, lunging for the suit's control piece. Vader stepped back, giving space for his blade to push the blue one away. He took swift advantage, turning the tables yet again, but Obi-Wan was not so easily shaken. Red met blue in rapid bursts, high, low, center as Vader tested his opponent, Obi-Wan countering each attack, save the last which rocked his balance, leaving him entirely on the defensive. Vader pushed his lightsaber against the Jedi's, the sparks reflecting in his mask.

"Your powers are weak, old man." He tugged at the Force, increasing his strength and Ben slid back a pace. "You've gotten sloppy."

"Not as much as you've gotten arrogant." Obi-wan relaxed his arms, resistance failing behind Vader's attack, the Sith stumbling under the change. The Jedi did not let the opening pass, Forcing Vader back with a powerful wave.

His cape flared in the gale Obi-Wan's offensive created, Vader sliding down the abandoned hall. He just barely recognized that he now stood before the main hangar proper, framed by the large doorway.

Obi-Wan pressed forward, with gratingly measured steps. "You can't win, Vader. Even if you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine."

"Do not threaten me, Kenobi!" Vader growled, heavy steps closing the gap between them. Their blades clashed again, a note of wild anger behind the Sith's arcing attacks.

* * *

The smuggler peered around the wall again as though the situation on the other side would change if he just kept checking. The hangar lay just beyond the opening, Han and Chewbacca flanking the doorway. He could see his ship guarded by a wall of snowy-white stormtroopers and groaned. "Didn't we just leave this party?"

Chewbacca barked softly, raising his blaster.

"Yeah, I'm sure you could take 'em, but let's save that for a different day?" He peered around the wall again. For the most part, the crowds were simply lingering, stationed there only to serve as barricade should the infiltrators try to escape. With the right odds, he _could_ break through them.

Chewie barked again, a greeting, and Han turned as Luke and Leia jogged up behind them.

"What took you so long?" Han asked as the two appeared.

"We ran into some old friends." Leia answered.

Han looked back again, noting the obvious lack of a third person. "But not the one you were looking for."

"We know what cell she's in."

Han shook his head. "Nope. The deal was find her and bring her with you. You don't have her so now it's too late."

Leia balked. "What! No! We know where she is!"

Han turned around, jabbing one finger into the girl's face. He naturally towered over her and used it to his advantage. "Look, _princess,_ if we go back, every stormtrooper that we just barely escaped from will have our hides and that execution you were scheduled for will apply to all of us."

Leia huffed, opening her mouth to argue, but Luke cut in. "We can come back after we get out of here. With the fleet. Right now, we have to survive if she's even going to have a chance."

The logic quieted Leia, as she reluctantly agreed, slumping against the wall. She could only hope that the girl would live long enough for her to convince the Alliance to add a rescue to their attack.

Luke awkwardly patted the princess's shoulder. "I'm sure she'll be fine." Without waiting for her response, and eager to get off the Death Star, he turned to Han. "Is the ship ok?"

"Yeah, seems okay, if we can get to it. Just hope the old man got the tractor beam out of commission."

* * *

Obi-Wan danced back from the heavy blow, his saber humming as it swung through the air to meet Vader's continuous attacks. What little patience Vader had had, was gone and he found himself growing furious that the old man was still alive. As Obi-Wan ducked under the red blade and lashed up to catch the Sith's arm, Vader twisted to the side, knocking the attack away. The tip of Obi-Wan's sword touched the floor, a scorch mark forming immediately, but the Jedi was quick to raise it again.

In his peripheral, Obi-Wan noticed the gathering troopers, the fight drawing them over, interest in the legendary dual over-riding any sense to fire on the enemy. Obi-Wan stepped forward, ready to attack again, steps stuttering as he spotted, sneaking behind the distracted guard, Han, Chewbacca, Luke, and Princess Leia, the latter whom he recognized from the recording. He noted with a heavy heart that Ariala did not follow them, only the tottering droids bringing up the rear.

 _Then she is still here._ The Force trilled a warning and Ben returned his attention to Vader in time to block another parry. The crack of their sabers must have been louder in the silent hanger because he felt Luke's attention focus on him in surprise.

Ben pushed away from Vader, risking another look at the boy, realization dawning on him, the Force giving him one last moment of wisdom. He smiled softly at Luke, his mind reaching out to the girl locked somewhere on the base.

He felt the brush of her mind, felt her concern welling, and imbued his final words with all the love he had. _I will always be at your side, my child._ Her confusion rushed into him, but he did not answer her, turning once more to the Sith, only just seeing as the red lightsaber arced down over him.

Luke's cry echoed though the hangar, the troopers wheeling suddenly to see their prey escaping. They fired on him, on the ship, on the slow moving golden droid, Luke avoiding the bolts only by Han dragging him away. He still stared at the pile of tattered cloaks and robes that had been Ben only seconds before. He glared as Vader prodded them and fired toward his general direction.

"Blast the door kid!" Han's voice came as though through a tunnel but Luke obeyed, shooting the panel the controlled blast door. It closed, separating the growing number of soldiers and Luke ducked into the ship as Han fired the engines and tore out of the hangar.

 _xxxxx_

The raw, tortured, heart-shattering scream that tore from Ariala's throat was little reaction in comparison to her violently lashing power bowing the armored cell walls. The metal groaned under her turbulent emotions but she paid it little mind. Losing Alderaan had been the start of a tear in her control that Ben's death completed. Untapped power swelled, anger and sadness roiling uncontrollably as she struggled to wrap her mind around the man's death.

Vader. This was all Vader's doing. Vader had stolen Alderaan. Vader had tormented Leia. And now Vader took her father – her true father – away. It was too much to let him get away with.

She turned to the door, the metal crumpling like paper as she Forced it open. Troopers shouted at her, weapons poised to fire, but she barely heard them. The Force shot them backwards, their blasters and bodies cracking against the walls and floor. She saw only red and the trail that lead to Vader, his smug glee making him a flame in the Force.

How many bodies lie in her wake as she stormed the halls, she did not notice, swift Jedi training and unrestrained Force prowess slicing through them with ease. As she dropped another, she felt Him, trembling with curiosity and the Jedi growled. Behind her.

She whipped around, hands outstretched to throw him, when her body was abruptly wrenched into the air, oxygen supply cut short, Vader's Force grip leaving her clawing at her throat.

"How unexpected," he droned. "For a Jedi."

He tossed her glibly to the side, her body smacking into a wall. Her emotions still quaked in the Force, even as she was knocked into unconsciousness and he considered her surging power.

Obi-Wan had chosen well with her.

Vader turned to the troopers coming warily up the hall. "Return her to her cell and keep her sedated. I may have use for her, yet."

 _ **To be continued….**_


	7. Death Star

**Chapter 6: Death Star**

Leia strapped herself into the chair beside Chewbacca as the skilled wookie twisted and flipped the fleeing Millennium Falcon through the stars. Han and Luke had darted off, manning the ship's laser canons and Leia had slipped into the pilot seat if only to aid by monitoring the flashing readouts.

A handful of Imperial TIE fighters, small and agile, darted and buzzed around the ship, lasers blasting against the shielded hull. Chewbacca dove as one came from the front, spinning to angle the lower canon for Luke's shot. The fighter ducked out of sight, the Falcon's shot vanishing into space.

"They're coming in too fast!" Luke cried as he watched the fighter pop in and almost immediately back out of sight. He rotated quickly in his revolving chair, trying to find the little ship. He was a skilled pilot and his aim sure, but this was an entirely different breed of rat he was chasing and they moved with precision.

A formation of three burst from below him and he felt rather than saw the shots they rained on the upper-side of the ship, the Falcon shuddering from the barrage. Han swore and trailed them, just barely nicking the wing of the last ship and sending it careening away.

In the cockpit, Leia fearfully clung to the console until the ship stabilized. "We've lost lateral controls." She reported to both Han and Chewbacca.

"Don't worry, she'll hold together," Han assured and only Luke heard the added plea to the ship to do just that.

Chewbacca flipped a few controls before pulling the ship up and back in a tight loop that momentarily put them behind two more fighters. Leia tapped a button firing the lesser canons on the front of the ship, successfully forcing them to dive right into the more powerful canon's path. Luke smiled and fired, the ship exploding from the direct hit.

"I got him!" the boy whooped, looking through the connective passage toward Han.

"Great, kid! Don't get cocky." He pulled his own canon to target the other fighter and shot it down.

Leia's voice carried over their headsets, "There are still two more of them out there!"

As if called into being by her warning, the final two ships dove into view, splitting to address the upper and lower canons. Han spun, firing a tail behind his fighter, stabilized with years of experience as the fighters return blasts rocked his seat.

Below, Luke struggled to keep small ship in his sights, swinging left and right, only just managing to line up a shot before it was gone again. He bit his lip and screwed up his face in concentration as the fighter appeared in view again. It followed the same swooping path, and Luke aimed just ahead of the ship, firing his second direct hit. From above, the burning fragments of Han's destroyed fighter filled his view.

"That's it! We did it!" He pulled a victory lap, spinning the chair a full circle, Leia's cheers in his ear urging him on.

Chewbacca roared in celebration from his seat as he pushed the ship far away from the carefully watching Death Star.

Vader stepped behind Tarkin, arms crossed calmly behind his back. The ploy had lost them a few good fighters but it was worth it. "They have made the jump to hyperspace."

"You are sure the homing beacon is secure aboard their ship?" Tarkin glowered at the cyborg. "I'm taking an awful risk, Vader. This had better work."

For the second time this rotation, Vader imagined his hands crushing the Governor's throat.

* * *

" _Ari…Ari, child open your eyes."_

 _The girl groaned and turned on her side, waving away the voice calling to her._

" _Ari, open your eyes. You've slept long enough, I think."_

 _Again Ariala groaned, but slowly opened her eyes. The pale wall of the Tatooine hut flashed brightly as her pupils adjusted and she flopped to her other side. Ben sat, smiling, watching her. She frowned at the man and sat up. The hut was silent and still. She heard no wind, no chatter of rustling pests, no distant growl of a disgruntled wetback. Even the Force seemed lacking._

 _All at once, memories came back to her and she dropped her head into her hands. The space station, Ben, Vader, anger. So much anger. It flared again within her but quickly fizzled away as the old Jedi placed a calm hand on her shoulder. She pulled her hands from her face, but did not look at him. How could she? She had killed. They may have been agents of the empire, but they were innocent and she had killed them barely aware she was doing it. The sounds their bodies made as they broke haunted her._

 _Ben watched her silently, feeling the turmoil in her heart, and it echoed sadly in his own._

" _This isn't real," Ariala finally said. "Is it?"_

 _Ben sighed and withdrew once again to the chair. "It is, in a way."_

 _She glowered in his general direction, still unwilling to meet his eyes._

" _No, we are not on Tatooine. This place is a manifestation of our shared memory. But I, my pupil, am as real as you, as real as the Force." He tilted his head. "Do you not sense it?"_

 _Ariala shook her head. It wasn't that she didn't sense it, but more that she couldn't. The Force felt muffled and she struggled to find synchronicity in it._

" _You heart is clouded. Let go of your anger."_

" _I want to…" she finally risked a glance at him and his patient gaze shook her core. How could he still look at her so gently? "…but he killed you. He killed Bail and Breha and everyone I have ever had." She pulled her knees to her chest. "I'm alone again."_

" _If you continue to believe that, it will be made true." Ben leaned back and crossed his fingers in his lap. "The Force has great power to bring fear to life. It is why the dark side preys on it._

" _But – "_

" _You are not alone. I told you, I will always be at your side." He stood and placed his hand over hers. She gasped as for a brief second his light in the Force glimmered. He smiled, pulled his hand away and was gone._

Ariala's consciousness floated in and out of the little grey cell, where she lay restrained, and the motionless desert hut. She moaned softly as she slipped into her physical mind, the glinting red of the ceiling and floor like fire, then back to the white walled room, to Ben's echoing promises. Reality blurred and she questioned which was the truth. Her heart yearned for the vision, she wasn't ready to let go, but her mind, coming out of the heavy sedative Vader used, knew better.

The cell fell into clearer focus, Tatooine returning to the inaccessible outer rim, and she bit the inside of her cheek to hold back her disappointed tears.

* * *

Luke's feet carried him without the boy fully paying attention to the destination. He stepped over the raised doorframe and into the small holding area, freezing as his eyes fell on the table on the opposite side of the room. The helmet, training remote, and lightsaber still lay there where he'd left them.

He crossed the floor slowly, hesitant as he pressed a hand against the saber. Had it really only been earlier in the day that Ben sat there, beginning the boy's Jedi training? It seemed a lifetime ago.

He fell into the chair, igniting the saber. Ben really had been a Jedi after all. The short tussle he had seen as the hermit held his own against the Galaxy's Greatest Villain showed his honed skill.

He sighed and dropped the weapon. Now who would train him? Now what would he do? Ben had had years and years of experience but he still fell to Vader in the end. What could a farmer from the end of the galaxy hope to accomplish?

His musings were interrupted when he felt, rather than heard, Leia stop at the doorway.

He turned, catching her eye as she started to leave. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude," she said. "I was just-"

"-looking for a place to think?" Luke finished. He nodded and turned back to the table. "Me too." He glanced back over his shoulder and gestured to the empty seat next to him. "Come on. We'll think together."

Leia hesitated a moment, lingering in the doorway, then strode across the floor to join him. She didn't have to ask what the boy was thinking about. She had seen the old man fall, too. The princess covered Luke's hand with hers, drawing his eyes to hers. "I'm sorry, Luke. He was a good man." She sighed as Luke politely withdrew from her touch, continuing. "My father spoke very highly of him." After a pause she added, "Ari did too."

Luke nodded, paused, and then stared at her as though she had grown a second head. "Ari?"

Oblivious to his reaction, too lost in her own thoughts to see his face, Leia answered. "My friend and personal guard. Ariala. Obi-wan raised her before she came to Alderaan…" the rest of her words Luke failed to hear as he gawked, unbelievingly, the weight of ten worlds seemed to fall upon him. Ari...Ari was there…had been there...so close and he didn't even know it. And now she was trapped within the Imperial fortress.

"Why didn't you say anything?!" He suddenly shouted, cutting short whatever the princess had been saying. She jumped and stared at him. "Why didn't you tell us it was her? We can't leave her there!"

Leia blinked. "You know her?"

"Of course I know her! She's my friend." He dropped his head, eyes saucers. "I thought she'd gotten into the academy or just ran away... what was she doing there...what was she doing all the way in the core system?!"

Leia balked as she struggled - though not as much as Luke - to realize that somehow in the massive galaxy, she had managed to come across someone else who shared a deep friendship with her guard. Her guilt at leaving Ari doubled but she quickly stuffed it aside. "Obi-wan sent her to my father to complete her training." Leia answered. She had only recently learned that truth as the two sped for Tatooine: that Ari's "Ben" and Bail's "Obi-Wan" had been one and the same. That Ari was indeed a Jedi. The latter fact had been the main reason she wanted Ari rescued. There was no telling what Vader would do to the girl if he found out.

Luke's question brought her back to the present. "Training?"

She stared, again, slowly asking, "You don't know?"

He shook his head, realization settling on him even as he did so. The way Ari always knew where to find him, how she seemed to know how things were going to happen before they did, that far off look that she got when talking about the future. _I think you'll find yourself in your own adventure. You just have to let it come to you..._ "She's a Jedi..." He stared at the lightsaber, blue eyes nearly bulging from his head. "Ben trained her to be a Jedi..."

"It is – was - one of the only secrets my father kept from me..." Her voice trailed off. Between Vader's torture and the impromptu escape, Leia had barely processed her emotions on her home planet. It had been so hard to believe it was gone even as she witnessed it explode, that immediate denial blinded her. Now, in the face of Luke's loss, her sorrow pressed down on her.

She could not fathom grief large enough to encapsulate the whole planet; she did not even feel she held enough for her parents. A part of her hoped that Bail had not yet made it back to Alderaan from the rebel base, but she knew better. He was a loyal ruler and would have made all efforts to be with his people when in the face of the empire's threats. Breha would have been at his side as he addressed the council. The guards and handmaidens lining the circular chamber.

Leia saw it all, the inevitable scene before the Death Star blew them away. She prayed they faced no pain, at least. No fear.

The silence in the little room stretched on, the two lost under independent clouds of incomprehensible grief. It was in this cloud, Han found them.

"Whoa...bad timing..."

Both youthful heads shot up at his voice and he raised his hands defensively."Easy. Didn't mean to surprise anybody." He pointed back toward the cockpit. "We'll be in the Yavin system soon. I need to know where we're going."

The switch in Leia was instantaneous, a shroud of authority falling over her as she stood. "I'll fly us in. They'll be wary of an unfamiliar ship and I'll have to transit my personal code."

Han opened his mouth to argue - no one but him and Chewie flew the Falcon - but her hard stare shut him up. She stepped from the room without another word and Han scoffed. "Nice lady."

* * *

The dense jungle of the fourth moon orbiting Yavin, to Luke, seemed ready to swallow the Falcon whole. As Leia carefully steered the ship over the high trees, circling twice while her code was verified and the ship scanned, the boy stared hardly believing his eyes. This planet was as alive as Tatooine was desolate. Whisper birds, gold and blue, darted into the sky, squawking in anger at the rumbling engines; flowers like a rainbow dotted the ground between the purple-leafed trees, and a sticky humidity clung to the air, fogging the ship's window. "Whoa…"

Han titled his head back and chuckled. "It ain't that impressive kid. Swamps and trees. You want to see something really nice - "

"Code authorized, you are cleared for landing. And welcome back, Princess." The confirmation from ground control interrupted Han and Leia smirked at the convenience. She titled the ship in a tight bank right, leveling out as an old, dilapidated structure came into view above the tree line.

The ancient temple of the Massassi lay shrouded in mist, but even without it, there seemed to be an eeriness about it that made Han's skin crawl. It wasn't bad, just something not quite normal, as though the rotting stones held a terrible secret.

The Falcon landed a ways from the building, on a landing platform they had only noticed when Leia brought the ship directly over it, crushing vine and twig.

A rag-tag group of officers gave them welcome, urging them into an armored speeder that carried them the rest of the way. They barely made it through the hangar door before Leia was bombarded, practically dragged out of the speeder.

"Commander Willard!" She waved to the man closest, and he gracefully pulled her out of the crowd, quickly ensnaring with a tight hug.

"You're safe! We had feared the worst." He pulled back and gave her a second look. A slight darkness hung behind her brown eyes and she was dirtied, but otherwise in one piece. He sighed. "When we heard about Alderaan, we were afraid that you were …lost along with your father."

The confirmation sent a cold wave through the princess but she made no sign of it. "We don't have time for our sorrows, commander. The battle station has surely tracked us here." She only mildly heard Han grunt in disagreement. "You must use the information in this R2 unit - " the little blue droid rolled dutifully forward with a soft whistle "- to plan the attack. It is our only hope now."

* * *

Satisfaction thrummed in Vader's chest as, to him, the Force seemed already shifting to his side, the last Jedi dead by his hand. Kenobi's death had opened a void in the Force that the dark side was all too eager to fill. The corrupted Force stroked his mind, seductively, whispering its continual promises of power and strength.

The last of the light side was gone, the vestiges of the old order swept away.

 _Except her_.

His thoughts turned toward the young girl and a dark smile spread. Obi-Wan's little student had come as quite a surprise. His plans to kill her too shifted in light of her earlier display. The power and mastery of the Force in her rage struck a familiar chord in the Force. He recognized it as his own dark turn, the first steps he took toward becoming Vader, when a clan of sandpeople was crushed underfoot. The old guilt he once felt at the event had long ago faded, as he embraced what true power lay for the taking. The Jedi were too kind with the massive living Force, but a Sith took what he wanted.

In that moment, as the little one ravaged his 501st, she had done the same.

The dark lord leaned forward in his chair in the solitude of his chambers. Could he use her?

With the completion of the Death Star, the Emperor was one step away from absolute domination of the galaxy. The rebellion was soon to be destroyed and every planet would fall in line.

His loyal mind, always in fear of his master's endless awareness, contemplated her turn for the strength of the empire. Adding her to their power would confirm their position and ensure no other rebellion sprung up in the far sectors.

But in truth, his ever-greedy heart sought her for his own purposes. He had never wanted to be apprentice to the dark side. He only bowed to Palpatine when he knew he was too weak to win. That was when he was alone. His smile widened.

Pressing a button on the arm of his chair, he spoke without waiting to see if anyone was listening. "Bring the prisoner in cell 2816 to me."

* * *

Ariala had no hope of wriggling away from the troopers that half dragged her from her cell. She was still too much under the influence of the sedative, groggy and disoriented. The monochrome halls titled and swayed in her vision, so that even if they took a direct path, she was too unaware to recall it.

As they neared Vader's chambers, she felt him reach out to tap her mind, and through the Force she saw his power, a serpent, massive and unyielding slither toward her. She tried to peddle away but the soldiers, seeing not what she could, held her firm. A single tendril of the snake wound up her leg, across her back and settled on her shoulder. Red eyes pierced her soul and she heard his internal voice – not the one created by his suit – cackle at what the probing revealed. Her own power felt so far away, beyond the mist of her hazed mind, and she could only shudder as the snake went about its task.

She was only half aware when the procession stopped before the solitary door on this level. "Lord Vader, we have the prisoner as requested."

The door slid open, the dark room looming beyond. The troopers entered and Ariala watched the snake rejoin the cloud of malice ever surround the Sith Lord. She stared with wide eyes, unable to swallow the knot of inferiority. His swelling strength brought some clarity back to her senses, so that she maintained enough control over her limbs to avoid falling entirely on her face when the troopers thrust her forward.

"Leave us," Vader ordered and the troopers obeyed.

Ariala pushed herself to her feet, wavering slightly.

"Sit." A chair slid from elsewhere in the room and cut her legs, forcing her to fall into it. She moved to stand once, but the wave of dizziness kept her still. Vader, she felt, was pleased.

He watched her in silence, fingers intertwined, formulating his plan. She would not be easy to turn after however many years she had lived in the Jedi's pathetic manner and he didn't have the emperor's subtle skill to twist another's thoughts and emotions without the subject unaware. But he had seen – and felt - it done enough to give the girl a good imitation.

"You're so lonely, aren't you?" Vader finally said slowly, the deep tone of his voice as soft as he could make it. "I can feel it. It pervades your heart." He pressed out with the Force, not for himself, but for her, strumming the chord of her isolation. It reverberated, showing her he knew just how much it surrounded her.

She pulled in on herself, away from the fang of that cursed serpent, but remained silent.

Vader continued. "Yes. You have lost so much, haven't you?"

And now he plucked this string, the echo of its Force tones filling the mental silence between them. Her memories surfaced and he read them easily.

"Friend, planet, home…parents." Vader purred each word like a knife twisting into her heart.

She snapped her reddened eyes to him. "I didn't lose them," Ariala hissed. "You took them from me."

Anger seeped into the chorus of her swirling emotions and Vader inhaled the toxic emotion with a pleased sigh. Anger he could work with.

"Did I?"

She growled.

"Was it me who sent the Princess flying away? No. Was it me who turned Alderaan into a threat against the empire, thus leading to its fall? No. No, those were the fault of the very people you trusted. The princess abandoned you. Alderaan failed you."

"That's not true! Leia would never turn her back on me, on anyone!" Wouldn't she? Ariala shook doubt away. Leia would always stand strong for the rebellion, that was true, but she was not one to sacrifice others for the end goal. Still, a worm of uncertainty curled in the bottom of her heart.

Vader pressed forward without concern. "She turned her back on Alderaan."

"You're lying."

"I am not. She could have saved them, all of them, if she had only cooperated with our requests."

"You asked her to betray the alliance!"

"A small price, I think, to save those she claimed to love."

"She had no choice. You gave her no choice…" but Ariala quelled under his words. She hadn't been there, hadn't seen but she knew Leia could be obstinate, unbreakable, loyal to the end. Would she have truly allowed Alderaan's destruction to save the rebellion force? Would she really have sacrificed her father and mother?

The Jedi shook her head, snapping it side to side, clearing the dark lord's manipulation and pulling what she could grasp of the Force around her mind like a shield. Clarity dripped into her as the sedative ebbed away. He was lying. He was a Sith. He was broken and dark and trying to do the same to her. She would not yield. Ariala forced her raging heart to calm, taking a deep breath before meeting the black mask's eyes.

Her words came measured, deliberate. "You did it, Vader. You may try to wipe your hands of these crimes by twisting the truth, but we both know you are responsible." She unfolded herself from the chair and stood, closing the gap between them with heavy, shaky steps. The Dark Lord did not move. "And I will be the one to stop you."

Vader chuckled darkly. "I look forward to it."

* * *

"The target area is only two meters wide," Dodonna said, determined eyes running over the gathered rebel pilots as the death star plans flashed on the screen beside him. They rustled and exchanged dubious glances. He quieted the impulse to rush over this bad-news, worse-news information and pressed on.

"It's a small thermal exhaust port, right below the main port. The shaft leads directly to the reactor system. A precise hit will start a chain reaction which should destroy the station."

He would have preferred stunned silence to the murmurs of disbelief that ran through the room. He had checked and rechecked every inch of the data himself, this was the only option; as impossible as it may seem.

He disregarded their complaints, dismissing them to their crafts. The less chance for them to think on it, the better.

The disquiet over the plan was almost enough to make Luke question his confidence. He sat, not yet outfitted with flight gear, in the back of the room and watched. Seasoned pilots and jumpy recruits alike exchanged petrified looks, whispering their fears to each other. He wasn't sure if he simply didn't grasp the magnitude of the challenge, or just didn't think it so impossible, but the young boy seemed to be the only one not trembling in his boots.

He stood, following out the main crowds. Pieces of their conversation floated back to him.

"…that Erso's father is the one who got these plans..."

"…could be a trap…"

"…Mothma didn't even condone the mission…"

"Skywalker!"

The call of his name drew Luke's attention behind him, Dodonna jogging awkwardly to catch him. Despite the short distance the man had had to cover to catch up to the boy, he huffed slightly and took a bit more color to his naturally flushed brow. Luke politely waited him to catch his breath before speaking. "Yes, sir?"

"I didn't get much of a chance to talk to you before but the princess says you're a pilot?" When Luke nodded in affirmation, he continued. "Good, good. We'll need as many as we can get out there." He pressed a hand on the youth's back steering him down a side passage in the sprawling compound. "Head down this way and look for Tylrive - big ortolan, can't miss him – he'll get you set."

 _xxxxx_

The room he had been directed to, like most of the old temple, was outfitted as much as possible for the alliance's needs. The molding walls peeked through sleek new tiles while blinking consoles and blipping screens illuminated the windowless space. In one corner, piled up to almost waist height, a hunk of orange and white fabrics, tubing, and wire tumbled together. Across from the pile, lining the stone wall, lockers stood in a line, their deep grey metal doors pocked with a multitude of rust marks. Each one had at least two names etched on the front, though one, he noticed, had as many as five.

Luke took a step further into the room. "Hello?"

A snorting grunt from the pile answered him.

"Hello?" He tried again. "I'm looking for Tylrive. I was told to come down here and - " Before he could finish, the pile shifted and lurched over as a tall and wide ortolan popped up, gripping several wires and fabric remnants in long trunk. The creature's large black eyes fell on Luke and he took two long steps over the mess to the boy.

" - here to get my suit." Luke finished lamely trying not to stare. Most ortolan's he had ever seen were shorter than him, stumpy little things that waddled around as though they could never quite get used to being on two feet. This one, though, came up almost to his chin and was twice as wide.

Tylrive snorted. "Of course, you are!"

"Be nice, we need him."

Luke turned to the source of the sudden voice, frowning as he tried to remember the name of the younger boy leaning in the doorway.

Realizing his confusion, the boy extended his hand. "Luke, right? Skywalker? I'm Wedge. Antilles."

Recognition lit Luke's face. "Yeah! You're like the youngest pilot or something? I heard your name floating around."

"Well, you know," Wedge said with a grin that displayed his false modesty. Luke chuckled in return and Wedge continued. "So womp rats huh?"

Luke glanced back, having turned back to the ortolan as he measured the boy's lanky limbs with unintelligible commentary.

"You done a star fight yet?"

"Sort of? Held off a few of the TIEs when we escaped the Death Star."

"In that junker?"

Luke shrugged, not sure what to make of that, and partly worried Han would materialize just to correct them.

"Pretty impressive you're not dead then." Wedge clapped him on the back with another smug grin. "You'll do alright." He turned to leave, pausing suddenly. "Oh! Right. I've got your assignment; Red Squadron. Looks like we're flying together."

* * *

The rotund station popped into existence before the Yavin system as it slipped calmly from light speed. The great red gas giant swirled before them and Vader, staring in anticipation from the command bridge window, scowled beneath his mask. Below him, in the trenches that lined the main walkway, he felt the nervousness of the flight navigator as the man realized the grave error; the blue forest moon that was Yavin 4 was not in sight.

"Lord Vader," he managed to squeeze out without a stutter. The dark lord turned.

"It seems our calculations of the planet's cycle were…incorrect." He swallowed, feeling a worrisome pressure on his windpipe. "Yavin 4 is on the other side. We will have to orbit the planet in order to be in range."

Vader's scowl deepened and his anger was clear in his voice. "How long?"

"Thirty minutes, Lord Vader."

The dark lord said nothing, turning back to the window. Patience was not something he had an abundance of, but in this case he could wait.

* * *

The flight hangar was abuzz with activity by the time Luke slipped back in, a neon beacon in his bright orange flight suit. His helmet tucked under his arm, he started toward the fighters, only just catching Han loading a mass of crates onto his ship. The boy sighed.

"So you got your reward and you're just leaving then?"

Han paused, recognized who in the sea of look-a-like pilots was addressing him, then continued to pass the crates to Chewbacca. "That's right. I got some debts I can pay off with this. Even if I didn't, you don't think I'd be fool enough to hang around here?" He shook his head. "Why don't you come with us? You're pretty handy in a fight -"

"Come on," Luke cut off exasperated. "You know what they're going up against. They could use a good pilot like you. But you're just turning your back on them."

"Attacking that battle station is suicide," Han spat back with just enough decency to keep his voice low. "And what good's a reward if you're not around to use it?"

Luke shook his head, foolish to believe the smuggler had changed at all in the short time since they left Tatooine. "Take care of yourself Han. It's what you're good at."

"Hey! Kid!"

Luke paused, glancing back over his shoulder.

"May the Force be with you."

Luke scoffed, waved something that could have been either 'get lost' or 'goodbye' and slipped into the crowds, migrating toward the long-winged fighters. As he ducked under wing and tube and ladder, looking for the unmanned ship that was bound to be his, he nearly collided with Leia. The princess was in final conversation with a squadron leader, but as she noticed Luke, his face drawn in frustration, she excused herself.

He had been through a lot recently and while she had had plenty of duty to keep her mind distracted, he maybe was not so lucky. "What's wrong?"

Luke started as she appeared seemingly from thin air. "Leia!" He sighed. "It's just Han. I thought…I guess I thought he'd change his mind."

The princess smiled sadly. "He's got to follow his own path. No one can choose it for him."

"I just wish…" he let the thought trail off, the memory of Ben's death too fresh to give it validation.

She squeezed his arm gently. "I know."

Blue eyes met brown as Luke sought her steadying presence. He felt calmer just being beside her. Almost like... Concern replaced disappointment and he lowered his voice, leaning closer so that only she could hear him. "What about Ari? I didn't hear anything about it…"

Leia's heart dropped. She had been partially avoiding the boy so as not to have to be the one to tell him. "Luke, I'm sorry."

"No…"

"We just don't have the resources to storm the station _and_ destroy it. If we had more time - "

"We can't just leave her there to get blown up!"

"Don't think I'm okay with this either. I tried to convince them." She lowered her voice again, practically only mouthing the words. "I even told them she's a Jedi. But they said no." She sighed, dangerously distracting grief and guilt roiling in her gut. She couldn't do this now. She had to be strong for them. "It's my fault she's out there, and I would risk my life to save her. But it's not just my life her rescue would be putting at risk. If we don't destroy that station every star system in the galaxy is at risk. I have to believe she'd understand. I have to believe she wouldn't condone the risk, if she knew."

"But she doesn't! She doesn't know anything!" He stopped, eyes wide with ideas. "A message…what if we can get a message to her, tell her to break out and steal a ship or get in an escape pod!"

"How, Luke?" Leia's voice was full of tired sadness.

The boy looked around as though the room would somehow provide him answers. "R2…R2 can do it. While we're close enough he should be able to transmit a message and, if she gets it…" he trailed off, the half-baked idea crumbling as he spoke.

Leia sighed again, his frustration heartbreaking. "Do what you can. If it works, we can bring her home." She took both of his hands in her own and locked his gaze on her. "But if it doesn't, you can't blame yourself."

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Luke nodded. "We have to try something."

Leia nodded as well, and, standing on the tips of her toes, placed a chaste kiss on his cheek. "For luck."

* * *

Perhaps it was the sight of it before the blood red planet, the weight of the mission, or just his faulty memory, but as the rebel fighters pulled into space, the Death Star looming into view, Luke thought it looked bigger and more menacing, the concave firing disc a giant eye that stared coldly at the tiny rebel fleet. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, hands flexing over the controls. He could do this. Nothing to it.

The voices of the other pilots, commenting on its size did little to assuage his fears and he was grateful for Red Leader's swift command. "Cut the chatter. All wings report in."

The Red Squadron sounded off and in the round of voices coming over his headset Luke could make out Biggs and Wedge as Red Three and Two respectively. He chimed in, "Red Five standing by," as he navigated the ship into position, flanking Red Ten's left side.

The ships shuddered in succession as the fleet drew closer to the station, the individual little lights and surface details coming into clear focus. "Lock S-foils in attach position and hold tight. We're passing through their magnetic field," Red Leader's voice called out through the headset.

The tremors waved through Luke's ship and, from the rear where the little droid was fastened in on the hull, R2 whistled his complaint. "Don't worry. We can do this."

"Accelerate to attack speed." Red Leader commanded. "This is it, boys!"

Luke powered the main thrusters, the ship rocketing to speed, diving toward the surface of the station, following the rest of his squadron as the maneuvered to take on the massive surface canons.

"Cut across the axis and draw their fire!"

The command hardly needed to be stated. Almost as soon as red squadron made their first pass, lighting the surface with fire, the station sprang to life, laser bolts pealing from top, side, and bottom as soldiers and machine within targeted the attacking Rebellion. The fighters split and dodged, weaving and twisting through the stars. A rainbow of explosions and bolts ignited the sky. It was, to Luke, amazing that there remained any order in the aerial dance. He swung across a computerized canon, arcing by faster than it could turn and destroying it with a few blasts. The flames licked across his ship, scorching the edges of his wings.

"Luke! Are you alright?" Biggs' voice rang in Luke's headset.

"I got a little cooked, but I'm okay." He switched to internal communications. "Was that long enough, R2?"

The droid beeped and whistled positively, the small satellite attachment retracting back into his dome-shaped head. The communication had been transmitted. Right about now, the worm that was the droid's command was zipping through the Death Star's computer network toward the detention level. If it wasn't stopped, all cells on that floor would open and he could only hope Ari would take the bait and try to escape. He climbed away from the station, pulling far enough to take notice of Gold Squadron's position. They hadn't yet begun their run, hovering behind the X-wings as the fighters worked to clear away the mounted canons. He could only hope there would be enough time for her to get out.

He grit his teeth and sped forward, clearing another cannon near the trench. _It's not just my life that's at risk._ Leia's words echoed back to him. Despite the battle raging in his heart, he knew she was right. Everyone out here was risking themselves for a unified task; he couldn't – _wouldn't_ – dare sabotage their chances. Ari, would never forgive him if he did.

* * *

On the outside, the black-clad Sith Lord seemed calm as he watched the battle from the main bridge. His arms were laced across his chest, his stance wide, pupil-less helmet eyes focused forward. But inside, Vader listened to the agitated churning of the Force. The light side seemed to be swirling with an overabundance of hopeful positivity and his crooning dark side convulsed at the intrusion. Something was trying to shift the balance again. Destruction hovered between the two sides and he sneered. It seemed those buzzing little rebels had some power after all.

He turned abruptly, cape sweeping, and stormed from the bridge. Already the halls were marred with evidence of the rebel's attack. Unconscious troopers and officers lie sprawled against the walls, bulk heads and ray shields were slammed shut where shots pierced the hull. All around him, the soldiers raced, orders flew over his head and comlinks crackled with conversation. The Force trembled again, in warning, and he paused as the corridor was suddenly rocked with laser fire. Smoke billowed from the hole, sparks crackling. Two more troopers lie unmoving.

"They're too small," he mused, the pilot in him surfacing. He rounded on an officer clinging to the wall behind him. Whether he was just conveniently there or had been seeking the dark lord Vader didn't care to know. "We'll have to destroy them ship to ship. Get the crews to their fighters."

The officer's head bobbed in understanding. He slid away from the damaged hall back toward the bridge and within seconds, Vader heard the intercom announcements ordering fighter pilots to their stations.

Still, the Force reverberated with dissent, and he moved steadily down the smoldering hall.

* * *

The Death Star was pockmarked with the rebel's blaster fire, the thirty-something ships making decent work of the station's defenses. Automated or not, the canons were too slow to match the zipping fighters. The X-wings swung around, in loose formation for a third pass over the booming weaponry. TIE crafts screamed from the hangar of the station, quickly gaining ground on the corkscrewing X-Wings. Luke heard several calls as the fleet split off to deal with the incoming barrage. The small black fighters outnumbered the rebellion two to one, flanking the fleeing rebels and causing them to peel off in swift evasion.

Luke scanned his systems, eyes following Biggs craft as it looped and spun from a locked-on TIE. The aerial acrobatics did nothing to deter the Imperial fighter and Biggs tense voice reverberated in Luke's ears.

"He's on me tight, I can't shake him! I can't shake him!"

He dove, nose-first toward the looming Death Star, arcing up to skim the surface and glanced back cursing as the TIE easily matched the move.

Luke was already on his tail, so far having avoided drawing attention to himself. His X-wing swept behind the Imperial fighter, Biggs careened out of the way, and Luke fired, the TIE exploding with his accuracy. Elsewhere, the regrouping rebellion picked away at the black ships, only a few stragglers looping away from the poor odds.

Gold Team moved in position for their attempt at the reactor.

* * *

Ariala moaned and squirmed against her bonds, lost in a sea of images racing before her unseeing eyes. Even if she hadn't been bound, there was little chance she was capable of moving on her own. As soon as she had been returned to her cell, the sedative was re-administered, the constant flow keeping her in a plaintive twilight state. At any given moment, she was flung between Tatooine, her cell, Alderaan, the vacuum of space, and a myriad of locations she couldn't recognize. Voices and names called out to her – or rather called out around her - but they flew in and out as quickly as the images adding to her dazed state.

So lost was she in the miasma of broken information she gave no reaction when the door of the cell slid open and Vader stepped in, looming like death in the frame. He turned to the machine pumping quietly beside her bed, examining the concentrations. After their last encounter he had ordered a higher dosage, it impressed him to see her even semi-conscious.

The dark lord returned his attention to her, inhaling the fear so palpable in the air. He could see her power, flung outward, tendrils of energy reaching beyond the cell, beyond the station, and possibly even beyond the system, functioning with only a single ideal: _escape._ He watched as her desperation swarmed within the Force, the vague notion swallowed in the overpowering potency that was the Force's concrete resolution. Unawares as she was, she had no control over her impressive strength, and the Force sucked on her energy, enveloping her mind and spirit even as she tried to control it. That she maintained any individuality in such a state was a testament to her will. She was quite strong indeed.

The station rocked again as the battle continued, and the Force grumbled in response. The light pressed closer to the dark side, yawning expanse threatening to swallow it up. Images flashed before his eyes and a cold certainty revealed itself; the station would fall.

Vader snarled. The nearly thirty-year long project, the glittering symbol of the empire's dominion, was about to fall because of a pesky group of children and rotten princess! His hands curled into fists. He would stop this.

The door opened behind him, as though sensing his movement, and he stepped into the hall rounding on the mousey officer that had the misfortune to accompany the Sith. "Order my fighter readied, and…" he glanced back to the cell. "move her to the _Executor_ on my command."

The officer bobbed in understanding. "Of course, Lord Vader. As soon as we have crushed - "

" _Now,_ sergeant."

* * *

"Damnit, Biggs where you?" Luke hissed, glancing again over his shoulder. The X-wing slipped into a loop and the chasing TIE did not let up. He rocked and swerved, dodging near misses, R2 shrieking with surprise as a laser bolt tore into the rear hull. Small flames danced at the point of impact but the system registered the damage was minimal.

"R2, see what you can do back there?"

The droid beeped and whistled in response, rather calmly attending to the smoking wound.

The TIE continued to squeal after them.

"I can't shake him!"

"Hold on!" Wedge's voice came through. "I'm on him, Luke!" he dove across the horizon, moving rapidly toward Luke and the Imperial fighter. The TIE watched the oncoming X-wing, carefully maneuvering to stay behind Luke. He barely noticed when a second X-wing popped in behind him, the crossfire of the roaring ships tearing him from the sky.

Luke sighed in relief at the fireball that had been his pursuer. "Thanks, Wedge."

He risked a look at the trench, noting the speeding Y-wings glowing engines. Three fighters chased them, tight on the bulkier ships. Gold Two was nowhere to be seen, only a faint wisp of smoke from his destroyed craft. Luke swore and glanced around, realizing, he like the others, were hovering in stunned silence. He could just make out Red Four whisper, "That's Vader's TIE advanced…" in the din of their battle.

He watched the smaller, curved wing fighter that led the two flanking TIE and felt his anger bubble.

"Let go, Luke."

As suddenly as it had come on, it faded, and Luke whipped his head around. It wasn't the first time he had heard Ben's calming voice since they fled the Death Star with Leia and the boy smacked his helmet, shaking the memory of the old man from his head. It didn't matter that it sounded like he was sitting right next to him, didn't matter that he could have sworn to hear the words with his heart and not his ears, didn't matter how much he wanted to find out that Ben was standing in the control center, miraculously alive. He had seen the red blade slice through the hermit and that was that. Ben was dead, and Luke needed to focus on the task at hand.

Shouts drew him fully back to the scene before him, the debris that had been Gold Leader ricocheting into the air. He swerved to avoid the larger fragments, Gold Five checking in to confirm the loss.

There was no time to mourn. Red Leader took the helm, guiding Red Ten and himself into the channel while Luke, Biggs and Wedge, pulled out of range as a final hope.

The fighters were already faster than the Y-wings had been, zipping tightly around the mounted cannons and pressing toward the reactor opening even before the Imperial squadron rounded behind them. But their speed was little help. Vader's group squeezed them in, Red Ten falling to their fire with screams Luke was sure would haunt him for months. He watched, breath held, muscles tense, as Red Leader closed the gap between himself and the target.

"It's away!"

The proton torpedoes exploded in a rainbow of color and for a moment, jubilation ran through the company, Red Nine shouting "It's a hit!"

"No…" Red Leader answered, his voice grim. "Negative. It didn't go in. It just impacted on the surface." He sighed and wheeled around, lining himself for another run.

The screeching of a pursuing fighter called his attention, his ship rocking as it fired. "I just lost my starboard engine. Red Five, get set to make your attack run!"

Luke stared, momentarily as the older man tried vainly to avoid the enhanced TIE, angling as much as the single engine would allow. Vader fired again and Red Leader swept by them, crashing into the surface.

Only he, Biggs, Wedge, and Red Nine to watch the skies, remained. They had been more than two dozen and now…Luke shoved aside the wave of despair that threatened to overcome him and pushed forward. The TIEs were currently out of sight, most likely regrouping, and he was not going to waste the chance. He drove the fighter at full speed, the station blurring outside of his windows. "Let's close up. We're going in…full throttle. That ought to keep those fighters off our backs."

The two banked behind him, falling in to flank and protect his rear. "Luke," came Biggs' worried voice. "At that speed will you be able to pull out in time?"

"It'll be just like Beggar's Canyon back home!"

Biggs' chuckled nervously.

"Womp rats right, kid?"

Luke smirked as Wedge's voice rang out. "Just like 'em."

The trio dipped into the trench, the tight walls echoing the whine of their engines back around them. Cannons fired, but the smaller ships zipped by unharmed, barely two bolts leaving the affixed guns before they were useless.

"We'll stay far enough back to cover you," Biggs said, dropping back a few ship's length behind Luke. Wedge positioned himself just between the two. His eyes darted quickly, knowing the TIEs would be on them soon.

As though reading his eagerness, Vader swooped around the station, lowering himself and his group into the trench. He couldn't help a small grin as he accelerated, the TIE advanced designed for more speed. The others lingered further behind but he gave them no mind. There was no one else to worry about. The single fighter that remained above the station was only focused on the canons, and too slow to be of concern. He lined up for the rear fighter, watching as it bobbed in the confined trough, but unable to swing around and fire. He smirked. "Useless."

Calmly, the dark lord fired, the shot marking true, the fighter smoking as it pulled away. Not a perfect hit, but he was gone and no more trouble. "Let him go. Stay on the leader." As the chase continued, the Force whipped and tossed about him with anxious agitation and mixed warnings. He breathed deeply, hiccupping the regulator, calming his mind.

At the head of the convoy, Luke watched Wedge pulled away to safety, Red Nine joining him out of range, the two steering back toward the base. Biggs clung close behind Luke and just behind him, Luke could see the stiff-winged TIE that covered Vader's right side.

"Hurry Luke!" his friend called out, doing a decent job tempering his fear. "They're coming in much faster this time. I can't hold them!"

Luke grimaced, his readouts glaring back at him that he was already at maximum throttle. There wasn't much 'hurry' left to give. "R2, try and increase the power!" He twisted some of his own controls, shifting as much as he could to the engines. The little speeder whined as it gained a bit more thrust, stabilizers shuddering under the assault. He grit his teeth and bore it, watching as his distance to the tower shrunk in tiny bits.

If it had been possible, Vader would have whooped and hollered behind the rebel ship. It had been far too long since he had had any challenge and though the X-wing he targeted before him could hardly count as tough opposition, the pilot was skilled enough to evade a direct lock. The Sith dove closer, his speed more than a match for the rebel's evasion. He felt the pilot's fear, almost heard his plaintive cry as the TIE locked-on, and rejoiced as the man's presence was snatched from existence. A flash of fire as the exploding pieces careening and crashed into the hull of the station. Idly, Vader wondered if the impact had been enough to knock the leader off course.

He broke through the fireball and almost grinned to see the final X-wing still speeding ahead. The small blue astromech stared at him from the rear of the ship. That damned droid was the reason for all of this. He locked his focus on the robot and increased his speed to close the gap. "I'm on the leader."

Adrenaline overpowered stunned grief as Luke watched the wreckage of Biggs ship float into the stars. He never got to tell him about being a Jedi…about Tatooine. Luke swallowed roughly. Owen, Beru, Ben, and now Biggs…he placed the pilot in his heart and closed away the distraction. Now it was just him and those screeching fighters and the tower was still out of range.

He centered the targeting computer, the yellow cross-lines confirming his thoughts. The small red numbers ticking down the distance still read over thirty-five thousand. He grimaced, the fighters at his rear spiking dread in his heart. He peered again at the computer. Twenty-two thousand. Still so far…

"Use the Force, Luke."

Ben's voice again.

Luke started, the hope the old man's voice caused a sharp contrast to his alarm. He shook his head. This was not the time! He forced himself to check the computer again.

"Luke, trust me!"

That same tickling in the back of his conscious, of a presence greater than himself, called to Luke beyond Ben's phantom voice. The same calming sense he had had when he faced down the remote droid…the Force. Letting himself fall into it, he exhaled and pressed the targeting computer to the side.

Immediately, base command was in his ear. "You switched off your targeting computer. What's wrong?"

He shook his head, still trying to convince himself this was a sane idea. "Nothing. I'm alright."

The fighter streaked ever closer to the final target, Vader still sticking tight to his rear.

The Sith dropped back for a fraction of a second, the humming of the light side bursting into a brief chorus, echoing from the ship before him. "The Force is strong with this one." But that didn't mean he knew what to do with it. Vader's targeting system bleeped as it gained a lock and he fired.

Luke veered at the last second, the Force guiding him away from the shot. Blaster fire crashed into the rear panels, the fighter shuddering under the impact and above the crackle of melting and breaking metal, R2's bloodcurdling scream. The little droid shrieked and whimpered as the shot passed almost completely through him, circuits and frame fuming.

Luke swore. "I've lost R2!" The only response was the faint sound of the computer at base repeating _the Death Star has cleared the planet._ He was out of time. He resisted the temptation to look at the targeting computer again, focusing only on that enigmatic sensation that told him he would be fine.

From behind, Vader grinned. It was not the shot he had hoped for, but satisfactory. Revenge was good too. He twisted a few knobs and controls, pulling further ahead of his contingent. The gap between him and his prey closed. He centered the rebel ship on his scope. "I've got you know."

The blasters fired. An explosion behind him, the force rocking him and his shots off center. His right flanking ship gone. "What?!"

Luke started as the green bolts sped by his window, missing terribly, and the bright flash of fire behind him. Had Red Nine come back?

The loud cheering patched into his headset answered him, the Millennium Falcon swooping in from nowhere, raining a trail of fire. Han's exuberance swept through the base and even Luke allowed himself a little laugh at the close call. "You came back!"

The Falcon passed overhead, sights on the TIEs speeding toward Luke. Vader shifted, unperturbed, aiming for the nuisance. His wingman was not so confident. With a pathetic yelp, the pilot swerved suddenly, acceleration knocking the two warships together. One crashed into the wall of the trench while Vader was launched the other way, spinning uncontrollably, controls sparking, the Death Star growing smaller as he vanished into the darkness of space.

"You're all clear, kid!" Han reported. "Now let's blow this thing and go home!"

Luke smiled, the Force flooding him with optimistic confidence, and fired as the exhaust finally came into view. The torpedoes flew, arcing into the reactor port. Luke twisted out of the shaft, chasing the Falcon away from the impending explosion.

"Great shot, kid! That was one in a million!"

* * *

In a quiet corner at the Salin Corridor just south of the Yavin system, far from the destruction of their greatest achievement, the _Executor_ popped into space, the diamond shaped Star Destroyer ominous as it hovered before a small, lonely Lambada-class shuttle.

"Sergeant," the shuttle's com crackled. The pilot turned to the officer behind him. "We have received your message. You are cleared for boarding. A contingent is awaiting the prisoner."

 _ **To be continued….**_


	8. Apprentice

**Chapter 7: Apprentice**

Music rang through the stone temple, a melodious sign of a celebration that seemed to know no end. They had already honored the fallen, already medaled the heroes, and already healed the injured. Now was the time for the party. Rations were forgotten as every food store was opened and ancient barrels of liquor flowed, urging them all in to high spirits. Since the dawn of the Alliance, they had not gained such a powerful win and no one was ready, yet, to face the reality that a larger war still waited for them.

But even without entertaining that thought, Luke could not bring himself to linger in their excitement. Slipping silently away toward the darkened hangar, the young boy wandered around, feeling a pang of loss as he noted how empty it seemed now.

"You've done well, Luke."

He wasn't shocked this time. He had felt Ben's presence hovering for a while.

"That's what everyone keeps telling me." Luke turned to the direction the voice had emanated, but he was alone. He sighed and sat on one of the crates. "Doesn't much feel like it, though."

"Loss is an unfortunately common part of war."

He chuckled bitterly. "Two weeks ago, the biggest loss I could think of was someone jetting away to a different planet. Now…" his eyes raked the ships again and the medal around his neck felt heavy with his guilt. Most of the lost pilots he hadn't spoken to, but they were lives lost nonetheless. People, fighting for the right cause, incinerated and lost forever. There wasn't even a body to bury. Biggs' plea rang through his mind. He hadn't been fast enough.

"You mustn't blame yourself, Luke."

"You said that about Uncle Owen, too."

"And it was true then. The empire is the true culprit. Blaming yourself only weakens your resolve and strengthens their power."

The boy sighed, leaning back. He could imagine Ben's face, somehow always calm, watching him. At length, he spoke again. "How did it even come to this?"

Ben gave no answer, but Luke felt great sadness pulse around him.

"Will it even make a difference? Preliminary reports show that Vader's fighter managed to escape and several dozen shuttles entered hyperspace before the explosion. Did we really do anything?"

"Do you think you did nothing?"

Luke exhaled, exasperated. "I don't know! I want to think we did, but then I think of what I – we – lost…" he trailed off, swallowing the words he had refused to let surface.

"She is alive, Luke."

The boy's head shot up. "What?"

"Ariala. She is alive. Though, still in the hands of the empire I am afraid."

Luke's heart wavered in cautious optimism. "How can you tell?"

"The Force connects everything, and I am one with the Force. I feel her presence as easily as you feel mine."

"Then we have to save her!"

Ben's disapproval came cold. "It would be foolish to seek out Vader now. The fleet is diminished but he is not. And you, Luke, are not yet trained."

"What good is training?" He scoffed back, bitterness forming a scab over his raw sadness. "You were trained, Ari was trained. Look what that got you."

Ben said nothing and Luke lapsed into irate silence. The old Jedi watched, through eyes that no longer held a solid form, the aura swirling around Luke. A cloud of negativity swarmed the boy, his sadness and anger dark in the Force. But within it, the boy's light still shone, sparking away the full effect of the dark side. He had hope, even if he was struggling to access it. Ben took a deep breath. "I am old Luke, hardly a shining example of a Jedi. As for Ari, she is still fighting. We both know her stubbornness." He wisely omitted that she was weak and he was barely able to contact her or feel more than her mass of confusion against Vader's darkness. "She will be fine. But you cannot turn away. I can still train you in the ways of the Force. Help you hone your power."

The light in Luke's aura brightened but the boy remained silent.

"You can become a Jedi, Luke," Ben pressed. "You can stand against Darth Vader."

* * *

Low power, failing life support, damaged stabilizer, and a plethora of other lights and alarms flashed as Vader steered the nearly lifeless fighter toward his Dreadnaught-class Destroyer. TIE fighters, even his TIE advanced, were not designed to maneuver deep space, but the Sith had managed to force his enough to traverse toward the next nearest planet and meet his cruiser. Ironically, he owed his survival to the destruction of the Death Star, the resulting shockwave, had pushed his ship away from the explosion and the momentum had been key in righting his spinning fighter and extending the life of his engines.

Still, his anger seethed, at the turn of events. The destruction of the Death Star was inevitable, he had foreseen that, but his humiliating loss burned. Not elite skill nor meticulous planning nor even that glaring obvious fault built into the station had been the cause. No, it had been that boy with the Force, that trash-heap of a ship, and his imbecile of a wingman! A series of frustratingly unfortunate events had been his downfall yet he would still be forced to bear responsibility. The emperor would not be pleased.

His ire ticked higher with that thought, as the grey walls of the hangar folded around him and the fighter settled into place. Wisely, no one made a move toward the ship, allowing the Sith a moment to brood before facing his crew. He would need to quell the whispers of how they had been called to _rescue_ their terrifying leader; reassert dominance in the wake of this failure. He refused to say _his_ failure. The will of the Force was something not even he could deny. He had put on a good show, but in the end, the station was destined and to fall and he had to worry about his own matters. He was safe and - his anger ebbed a small notch - so was his trophy. The thought of being able to play with his new toy purred coolly in his mind.

Vader exhaled slowly, content with the small win, and lifted himself from the cockpit, leaping to the hangar floor with a resounding thud, as heavy metal limbs bent to support his weight. Rightly, the gathered commander and troopers quaked at his sudden appearance. He straightened slowly, drawing himself to his full height and enjoying the way his commander, despite being at the Sith's side for several years, still fidgeted as the dark lord rose.

"Lord Vader, I am glad to see you unharmed."

The dark lord sneered, strolling purposefully past the officer, his long stride carrying him swiftly toward his private residence. Immediately, they fell in line behind him.

"It is true, then, that the rebels have damaged the Death Star?" the commander pressed. Since Vader had been aboard the station, the _Executor_ remained in frequent contact just in case the Sith demanded his flagship, and as such received some word of the attack and impending danger.

"Are rumor and conjecture part of your duties, Admiral?" Vader spat back, never turning to face the man. Had the man no decency? The mere mention of the Death Star was enough to stir up Vader's wrath.

"No, my lord. Of course not. I only ask to see if they may need assistance - "

Vader was far too happy to see his reserved lift come into view and withheld his brusque response until the doors were closing behind him. "They do not need any help."

 _xxxxx_

Even for him, Vader knew his temper was beyond control. It boiled inside of him, red-hot steam clouding his mind. The equipment in his suit, designed to control his charred body, blared warnings across his helmet: heart rate elevated; core temperature rising; blood pressure mounting; neural activity spiking. The flashing text only burned him even more and he was struck with a sudden need to be rid of the life-sustaining armor.

The hyperbaric chamber within his quarters, a black spherical compartment that filled most of the room, seemed to him call hungrily to him, and, throwing aside his cape, Vader stepped inside. In great contrast to its outside, the interior boasted sterile, bright, white walls which swallowed him whole and he welcomed the hiss as it was sealed and purified, pressurized oxygen flooding into the chamber. Almost instantly, the robotic arms of the mechanism sprang to life, carefully removing layer after layer of his covering. One lifted his helmet and he cringed as his natural eyes struggled to adjust, the air stinging his eternally raw skin. More arms removed his boots, gloves, plating, and belt until finally, after what felt like ages, he sat in the small chamber uncovered and unhindered. His metal limbs flexed and stretched, the sound of the working gears grating to his ears. He found he welcomed the pain of their free movement. The pain meant he was still a man under all the contraptions keeping him alive.

He exhaled, the metallic hiss of his respirator echoing in the room. He would never be rid of that. Grafted into his chest to replace the fragments of flesh that had once been his lungs, the device could not be removed unless he sought a very slow and painful death. Still, he resented the sound, and growled, the noise coming out more like a deep groan. He didn't have to look down to know that what remained of his organic skin, even though carefully healed over more years of agonizing treatments than he could count, was marred and rippled beyond repair. The old scars still blazed red trails, dips and rivets where too much mass had been eaten away by the flames.

Tapping a few buttons on the console, a bacta mist sprayed into the chamber, the heavy cloud creating a veil as it filled the area. As the first particles touched his skin, fire sprang to his nerves and he clenched the arm rest. As soothing as it would eventually become, the healing mist was torture in its first minutes, an irritant that delved deep.

He pulled his mind inward, breathing in the silence of his environment and forcing himself to let pain replace his anger. Pain he could always count on. Pain he wore more willingly than his armor, etched in his flesh, memory, heart and soul. In here, he could find peace, calm to arrange his swirling thoughts.

He felt as though everything stood upon cracking ice, and the silent world surrounding him only echoed the snaps and pops as tendrils leapt out underfoot. One wrong step, one wrong move, one wrong thought would send him plunging to his icy demise. A hunger for vengeance warred with a necessity for planning. He knew the rebel base still lie somewhere on the small moon, knew their weakened numbers would be no match for a full assault. And his skilled strike team, unspoiled by any recent battle, would wipe the vermin out in one go. But it was what he did not know that gave him pause. He did not know what other forces may lie on the base, he also did not know what sector they burrowed to, and he also dare not risk another dishonoring defeat.

His mind slipped into a more strategic gear, rolling over tactic and strategy he usually had little care for. The simplest solution was the one that evaded him most. He could blockade the moon, bottleneck their escape and shoot them from the stars even before the broke atmosphere. But he was one ship. One powerful ship, true, but one he could not afford to lose.

Like his TIE advanced, the _Executor_ was first in its line of Super Star Destroyers with only him and the emperor privileged to have them. If he went back to Sidious having lost both the Death Star and the _Executor_ there was little chance Vader would survive his wrath. As much as Sidious was Sith Master, he was still the conniving Palpatine who had single handedly manipulated the entire Republic into a fall. Every pawn moved carefully and a waste of his more powerful resources was something he did not tolerate.

Vader took another deep breath, the needle-like sensation the mist provided ebbing away to a tingle of phantom fingers along his scars. He would need patience again.

Tapping another button on his console, a one-way video screen popped up, Admiral Ozzel's face greeting him from the bridge. The man looked at the screen, a blank black square from his perspective, and snapped to attention as he recognized the source. "My Lord."

"Commander, order the nearest Destroyers to our position and prepare our fighters for an assault."

* * *

The holomap hovered before her, the hundreds of planets that made up their swirling galaxy, twinkling beside their stars, the vastness they represented dropping a pit in her stomach. Leia sighed, fingers gripping the projector table. She had barely had any sleep over the past four days, feeling stretched thin, as her attention was constantly demanded in ten directions at once. This rare moment of solitude came only as the fleet and officers bustled hurriedly in final preparations: Yavin 4 was being evacuated.

That Vader had not yet retaliated was a welcome miracle, but she, Willard, and Dodonna were not fool enough to think the cease-fire would last. In fact, it was widely believed the only reason for the reprieve came because of the violent debris and radiation cloud spreading from Death Star's last position making travel around Yavin difficult for even the most experienced pilots. As it stood, even they were being forced to plan an out-of-the-way route from the system to avoid it.

Her eyes scanned the looping line that outlined their chosen hyperspace road. It darted directly through the length of the Outer Rim, connecting the vast array of star systems oft forgotten by the empire's patrols. Small, underdeveloped planets with colonies formed mainly by accident, it had continued to prove the most effective hiding space for their continued resistance. Even better, the tiny dwarf planet that hugged the border between Outer Rim and Unknown Space was unnamed and unmapped, invisible to the empire and home to the off-the-grid rebel base Titan Outpost.

Even amongst the alliance, the location was little known, seen more on lists than brought up in conversation. The fleet there, night squadron, had a mysterious reputation but Willard had known enough about it, and them, to guarantee the base would be able to house the new additions.

"Your highness."

Leia pulled her attention away from the map, turning to face Wedge, the newly appointed Red Leader. "Yes, Antilles?"

"The freighters are nearly loaded and we've received the all clear from our scouts orbiting the moon. We'll be ready to depart in 20 minutes."

"Very good. Make sure they keep tight. We have no idea when this can all turn south."

Wedge nodded stiffly, the authority of his position still uncomfortable to him, and raced away, completing the final checks.

Leia took a solemn look at the nearly empty command center. The equipment that could be moved had been loaded away into crates and boarded to go with them, the rest powered down, wiped of pertinent information, and covered for the next inhabitants. Beyond this room, barracks and commissaries stood just as empty, personal belongings stripped from the old walls, doors pulled closed, darkness and silence encroaching once again on the old temple.

The finality of it all suddenly overwhelmed her. She had not known any other base and without realizing it, Yavin 4 had become something of a second home, the last place she had seen her father's image. She turned back to the holomap, envisioning him here, beside Mothma and other leaders she knew of by name, enduring the same stresses she now found herself facing. His shoes were far too big to fill. She shifted, unconsciously, to the side stepping out of the shadow he would always leave over her. She was an Organa. She was a Rebel. She was a leader. But she was not her father.

Leia drew in a deep breath. She was not her father but that did not mean she was ill-equipped to take on his duties. Her life had been a straight path to this goal. Drawing herself erect, shoulders back, chin high, she tapped the console board, wiping the memory unit then powering it down and flooding the room in darkness.

"Goodbye, Father."

* * *

That Ozzel was hovering behind him, clawing at his throat, toes barely scraping the ground, was of little concern to the Sith lord. He stared at the two ships dwarfed by his glistening Dreadnaught and felt only rage. Two aged Destroyers – a republic model _Venerator_ and the small battle scarred _Procursator -_ stared back at him from beyond the window. Even if he had not been aboard the larger ship, they would still seem miniscule to anyone who looked. His Force grip tightened somewhat on Ozzel's throat and he thoroughly contemplated killing the man. This rabble the commander pulled together was hardly an assault team

"My Lord," the admiral choked out, surprisingly skilled at talking around his limited oxygen. "There are no others in the area. Most of the larger or newer ships have been recalled to the Core to celebrate the weapon's completion." The pressure on his throat tightened again, his next words coming at a strained whisper. "I can, of course, contact them for support." He was suddenly flung across the room, body skidding on the narrow walkway, hands scrambling for purchase to avoid sliding into the control pits. He glowered at the Sith's back, standing with as much decorum as he could. "Of course not, sir. Very well. Coordinates are set. We launch at your command."

"Go." Was Vader's only response. This would have to do. His patience was nearly gone after how long it took to divert the limited fleets in the area for his off-the-books task and now to realize he had the scraps of the empire's junkyard was a blow that felt almost deliberate. Word was already spreading around the ship of the true fate of the Death Star, as continued hails went unanswered. He noted the shift in his crew, heavy doubt and a thread of dissonance. He did not doubt that many would seek to join the rebellion if they were given the chance. But he would crush them as well.

In what seemed a few terse minutes, the trio of ships was in and out of hyperspace, dropping before the fourth moon with imposing purpose. Already two rebel freighters and a squadron of fighters hovered beyond the planet's orbit and more ships were launching from the surface to meet them. Vader scowled. They had come too close to losing his prey.

As soon as the rebel band came into sight, the imperial fighters launched, spraying a cover of laser fire as they zoomed from the hangar. Thirty zipping, small, black ships shot toward the unprepared rebels and Vader watched as several X-wings broke apart under the attack, too slow to escape.

"Maintain our fire on their freighters," he ordered as the Destroyer's more powerful canons joined the fray. The slower moving cargo ships were heavily shielded, the bolts fizzling out against the invisible barrier, but he knew they could not last long against such firepower. Around them, the fighters had regrouped, and while the rebels were outnumbered - three to one in some cases - they were doing well against his fleet.

* * *

"Leia!"

Leia paused on the ramp of the Falcon, the crate she was pushing hovering before her, and turned toward Luke's voice. He was one of few pilots that remained on the planet to guard her final ship as it took off. Judging by the tone of his anxious call, she gathered things had taken a sour turn.

"Three Destroyers have dropped out of hyperspace. The fleet is under attack!"

Leia swore, shoving the cargo unceremoniously onto the ship, Chewbacca growling from inside as it careened into a wall. "Get your team up there and help the fighters," she directed quickly to Luke. "The Falcon has enough firepower to keep us safe." When he didn't immediately move, she shooed him with an urgent "Go!"

With a hasty nod, her orders giving him the freedom he wanted, Luke darted off, 4 Y-wings leaping into the air not long after.

Leia hurried into the Falcon, punching the door closed and already half way to the gunner seat when Han's frustrated yell reached her. "I didn't sign up to be your personal fighter, princess! If they scratch my ship, it's coming out of your pocket!"

"Like you could see another scratch on this!" She screamed back through the headset as she settled into position. "Just get us out of here!"

As the engines roared to life, the Falcon twisting out of the hangar, she clicked on her com. "Willard! Dodonna! Get the freighters out of here."

"We won't leave you behind!" Came Willard's voice just over the soft explosions as fire pummeled his ship.

"I'm on my way. Just go! This isn't a fight we can win."

He was silent for a moment, contemplating her words. It was not his normal choice to run. But finally, he returned. "Very well. We will meet at the rendezvous point. Be safe!"

"I always am!" She clicked off the little device before he could respond. Midday was settling quickly over the planet, but the shape of the imperial ships eclipsed the sun, spreading long shadows over the surface. It felt morbidly appropriate to see the planet that had once been sanctuary now covered by the empire's long hand.

* * *

The rebels and imperials darted and flit around each other, blasts skewing passed as skilled pilots avoided being blown out the sky. Both fought with dedicated effort, though both knew the fighter on the other side of their attacks was not their primary concern. Both rebel and imperial alike had the shared goal to keep the fighter ships away from the more valuable carriers. Already, two of five transports had found clear space and jumped to lightspeed. One had succumbed to the Destroyer's barrage and the smoldering wreckage glowed like a small sun too far from orbit to be pulled to the surface below.

In his Y-wing, Luke cursed their odds, swinging around the ship, dragging three TIEs with him and bee-lined for the smaller Destroyer. He didn't have any delusions that he could last long in a dogfight with more agile imperial fighters, but the heavier armament of the bomber ships could distract the larger ship hopefully long enough to create another opening for their final carrier. He spotted, in his peripheral, that the Falcon had cleared the planet and was giving the unsuspecting TIEs a bit of a show. They – having not witnessed the Corellian cargo ship in battle at the Death Star – had not expected it to have any fire power. They were quickly reassessing the threat. As Leia had probably intended, four TIEs broke off from an excessive attack on a single X-wing and chased after the Falcon. It zipped out of Luke's sight and he sent a small prayer to the Force that they would be fine. Turning his full attention to his own task, he twisted and looped around his attacker's bolts, jerking as a few skimmed the hull of his fighter. R2 bleeped from his hold and immediately went to work repairing the damaged cables and controls.

"Focus on the firing controls, R2!" Luke shouted back realizing he had lost targeting in his right canons. Bolts splayed out randomly, despite his efforts to aim, a few nearly striking his allies.

"Transport Four away!" suddenly rang in his headset, one of the fighters confirming. Luke grinned. That left only one more. He pushed his bomber faster, dodging the smaller cruiser's blasts and skimmed the underside. Just behind him, five TIEs rushed to overtake him, his speed slipping as he neared a larger canon. "Come on…come on…"

R2 whistled positively. Luke locked his canon on the weapon he sped toward. The screaming of the TIE's behind him grated his ears. He fired, pulling away suddenly with as much speed as his thrusters held, just as the torpedoes met the tower. The explosion, as he had hoped, snagged three of the pursuing TIEs in its fiery hands, the others scrambling to move away. It had been a risky shot, banking solely on the shielding of the heavy ship, but a success nonetheless. R2 chittered angrily about close calls and scorching but Luke only laughed, pressing back toward the main fleet. The final transport leapt out of sight. "All transports away!" Wedge hollered victoriously over the headsets. "Fighters, pull back and get out of here!"

Even before the command had been given, X-wings and Y-wings were flicking into hyperspace behind the transport. Luke spotted the Falcon sweeping a protective spray behind him, TIEs peeling away to avoid being caught. "See you at our new home!" he called to the smuggler.

"Right behind you, kid!" Han shot back.

The final ships popped away and the silence of space fell heavily over the moon again.

Silence that seemed to leak immediately into the _Executor_. No one dared speak as the dark lord stared at the empty space spreading before him. The assault had taken out a handful of fighters and the one freighter but in all, the rebellion had escaped. Escaped! Anger he had not felt in ages seized every fiber of his being and it was all he could do to restrain the flood's ability to level the ship.

"Track them." he ground out, the hissed words barely intelligible over his respirator.

The fear in his crew jumped another notch and the silence spread thicker as they stared about, wondering who would be fool enough to tell him. Finally, Ozzel spoke up. "I'm afraid we cannot, my lord. We have not placed a tracker on - "

"Excuses!" The Sith whipped around, rage lashing to spark nearby consoles. "You lost me my prize and you will be the one to find them." He pressed closer to his commander, for once glad for the terrifying armor that added height to his thick frame. "Or you will suffer their fate."

* * *

" _Then…_ _Anakin – Darth Vader – is my father?" her voice echoed through a tunnel._

 _Stone walls molding with age pressed around her._

 _A thousand screams pierced the air as fire enveloped them._

 _Now she flipped and twisted in a star fighter. The scum was in her sights._

 _A massive wookie bellowed victoriously in her ears._

Ariala's mind spun a million miles per second, nonsensical images, sounds, emotions, and thoughts, launching through her unshielded mind. Worlds she had never heard of, people she had never seen, lives she had never known, all took brief residence in her body, a constant presence in the Force that flowed through her. She tried, vainly, to cling to just one image, one sound, but she was formless and without control. Even her own power seemed to have fled her, tauntingly just out of reach.

She would have hated it, if she could. She would have screamed at it, if she could. She would have cried, if she could. But she could not. Her feelings were not her own to command and so everything and nothingness swirled through her as though she simply did not exist.

Ben watched his pupil, anchored in the storm of the Force that surrounded her. A part of it, as he was, he could see her grip on reality slipping. Though her physical form remained secure by binders and cell to the _Executor_ , her spiritual self was adrift. Somewhere, in the rhythm that was her life-force, he felt her loneliness, sadness, and fear which had been her final conscious thoughts. Without something to temper them, they swelled and surged within her over the passing days, growing as the Force pulled similar sensations into her mind. He could not bear to sit back and watch now that he knew. He reached out, his presence strong and steady, slowly clearing away the miasma around her mind. Piece after piece he pulled away, slow agonizing work, only to realize after a while, that for each bit he so gently removed two or three more simply tied deeper into her soul. He frowned. Whatever Vader was so cruelly administering was quite strong to so thoroughly manipulate her power.

Ben redoubled his resolve and dove head-first in the mess. Almost immediately he was thrashed by the storm of information swarming her, nearly thrown from his attempts but he was steady in the Force and allowed himself to ride the violent wave. He ebbed closer and farther from her being, the surf gradually inching him ever nearer, until finally it crashed him against her consciousness and he tied himself in to avoid being pulled away.

"Ariala, you must listen to my voice."

 _The twin sons baked her skin, so much hotter than she remembered. She felt bare in their intensity._

 _A soft voice called for her._

 _Then she was cold, so cold. Uncovered in the snowy peaks that stabbed the foreign sky._

 _There was that voice again._

 _She couldn't breathe! She couldn't move. Stars exploded all around her, speckled holes in the vast array of space. Fragments of crew and ship listed by her sight. She couldn't cry for them._

 _The voice screamed louder and with a painful thud she crashed from the soft bantha fur bed, flailing last minute. The cry from her own throat startled her even more. Her voice. How long had it been since she heard her own voice?! She cheered, and screamed and spoke her name and for a moment, clarity snapped into her breaking mind. She was back in the little hut, where time stood still._

 _Ariala wheeled around, the voice of her master nearly deafening as he called for her._

" _I'm here master, where are you?"_

 _His voice seemed to come from all directions at once but even in the world of her mind the hut was far too small for him to hide. She spun around again, and then there he was, in the same spot he had been before. She stopped and smiled widely and this time did not hesitate to take his hand._

" _Master!"_

 _Ben smiled, softly, though it did not reach his eyes. The effort to clear her mind, hold back the Force, and maintain himself was taxing._

" _Master, I don't understand what's happening to me."_

" _Your will to survive is stronger than you can control, especially under Vader's poisons." He said matter-of-factly._

 _Vader. The name made her cold then hot with fear and anger. That's right. Vader. "He wants to turn me…or kill me." She locked eyes with the older man. "I'd rather die."_

 _He pressed on as though he had not heard her. He had to help her in this matter first. "You are losing yourself to the Force, Ariala. You are unhinged – "_

" _Floating…lost." For a second her eyes clouded over and he felt the strings of the Force pull at her. Ben cut them viciously._

" _Ari!"_

 _The girl snapped back, looked around, momentarily confused. She spoke softly, still seeing beyond them. "I've seen so many things I don't understand…I've been so many things…lived so many lives." She swallowed. "Died…"_

" _As do any who become one with the Force. To join is to lose your individuality. For most, it happens after death."_

" _Then am I…?"_

" _No." He snapped harsher than he intended. The very thought crushed him and he could not bear to even let it be spoken._

" _But you are…" she raised sad, confused eyes to him. "How are you…you?" Was this another twist of the Force, a memory that wasn't her own?_

" _I've done more over the past two decades than simply train you," Ben answered with a light chuckle. "But that is not important. You need only know, that yes, I am me and I am here. But I cannot stay for long. The Force still seeks to have you. You must find an anchor, return to yourself, as you feel now, or it will swallow you."_

" _I...I've been trying."_

" _You are afraid, angry. It still clouds you. You must let go of that!"_

 _She shook her head. He didn't understand. If she let go then that meant letting go of him. Forgiving Vader. And truly losing everything. She had to hold on to it. "I can't…" she said slowly._

" _Ari!_

 _The world wavered sharply, a glistening city in twilight replaced it. She felt helpless, staring from a high veranda toward the Temple, the first whispers of a shadow she long feared echoing in the coming night. Smoke flittered through her nose from somewhere and the little lives in her belly stirred at the onslaught. Anakin…_

" _Ari!" Ben's voice snapped her back again, but it was only a second, the worry in his eyes terrifying. She had never seen him like that. And then she was flung again, fire and hatred and agony and betrayal and guilt and weakness. Too many lies, too many wasted years, too much untapped potential, too much hurt! She screamed, tears rolling her bidden down her cheeks and though in the whispers of the mind that was hers, she heard her master's call, heard him plead to release her negativity ,but she couldn't because she didn't know what was hers anymore. This anger was stronger than anything she felt. One that had simmered over too many years and it had finally boiled over._

The walls of her cell shuddered, the burst of power the most focused since her sedation. And on his bridge, fuming at their incompetence, Vader paused. His anger melted into the Force, into the power that emanated from her, then slammed back into his core, doubled. Old thoughts stirred in his new ire, subconsciously, but infuriating nonetheless.

"Perhaps there is a more direct path…" he mused suddenly, the navigation officers jumping at his voice. For the past several minutes, he had silently lorded over them while they vainly tried to find any way to trace the rebel fleet. They watched as he slipped away and as one, breathed a sigh of cautious relief.

Vader stormed with purpose toward the detention level, toward his only prisoner, inhaling the anger she ignited in him. Each step became stronger, each thought more murderous so that by the time he reached her door, his cracked lips were peeled in a terrifyingly dark grin. His eyes lolled to the machine at her side and with a flick of his fingers its steady beeping fell silent, the drip of anesthetic halting. He chuckled. "Yes…for what I need you for…you must be absolutely awake."

* * *

It took a full two days for the heavy drugs to leave her system enough and for Ariala to gain some sense of reality. As before, every inch of her mind and body hurt, but she was too preoccupied to notice. The moment lucidity returned to her, almost to the second, Vader was there, black form staring at her from the cell door. She didn't need to see the Force snake to know his power seeped about the room. She pressed back as much as she could and felt his bemusement at the struggle.

"Hold your strength, little Jedi," he growled. "I doubt you'll be willing to just give me the information I need, and I'd hate it if you broke too quickly."

She could hear the smirk and despite herself, a spike of fear ran up her spine. She swallowed stiffly and forced herself to meet his eyes. "You will kill me before you break me."

He laughed a sharp bark that scratched his charred throat. "I already broke you once." He said as he stepped aside and four troopers rushed into grab her. "This way will just be more effective."

Spurred by the unspoken cue, the stormtroopers dragged her from the cell and toward a wide red door at the end of the detention level hall. Even before they reached it she knew it for what it was. The echoes of agony and sadness pounded at her heart for attention. She leveled a glare on the Sith. Just how many souls had he tormented in here?

Vader did not turn to meet her.

The door slid open with a hiss, a matching circular crimson room lying beyond. The troopers dragged her in and the sensations seemed to double as they crossed the threshold.

Ariala looked about herself, finding the sterility of the room disgusting in the contrast of what happened here. The space was laid out much a like a laboratory with tables, shelves and walls lined or hanging with neat rows of tools and potions. In the center of the room, stood a steel platform, barbs and prods spread from it like broken wings. It was in to this the troopers forced her, chest, legs, hands and head fastened into place. She could barely wriggle. She tried not to show her fear as Vader stepped forward. "You will tell me where the rebels have gone." It wasn't a question, Ariala noticed, and he did not await any response from her. It was a decision; he was simply telling her what he already believed. She swallowed again and took hold of the only thought that mattered now: Leia and the rebellion had gotten safely away.

* * *

There was a reason this planet didn't have an official name, Luke thought as he finally took a moment to examine the new location. The planet was a bleak, barren, rock-strewn thing that seemed more asteroid than planet. A mossy green sand gave an illusion of grasslands though the land was pocked with gaseous pits that belched a foul odor into the air, clouding the upper atmosphere. Between that and the sun, an orange dwarf star which hung just too close, the surface was practically uninhabitable.

Underground, however, the planet was rife with life. Imported vines and flora spread over the sprawling caverns, green and red and yellow blooms burst in spirals along the otherwise grey walls. Bright lights of a similar hue to the natural orange sun illuminated the base, while the smaller offshoots that served as rooms used a dimmer, more bluish light, creating a subtle difference between the "inside" and "outside" of the cavern.

The base consisted of fifteen subterranean caverns outfitted much the same, running deep into the planet's core. The upper most level, where they entered the base, held the hangar, scanners, long-range communication hubs and navigational computers that needed quick access to the sky above. Barracks, mess halls, commissaries took up sublevels seven through nine, and just below them training rooms, commander quarters, conference centers on ten and eleven. Leia, Luke knew, was somewhere down there with the Yavin commanders, debriefing Titan Base leaders on their successes.

Luke paused his wandering and sighed. He hadn't really seen much of the princess once the celebrations were over, but her influence came down the grapevine quickly and he couldn't help but be worried about how much she was pushing herself.

Without realizing it, he turned and started toward the large spiral steps that connected the many levels. He had no idea what he'd do once he got down there but his feet continued to carry him nonetheless. The truth was, he realized as he walked, he had no idea what to do about anything. He had no assignment, no mission, no orders and now that he thought about it, since his abrupt leave from Tatooine, the boy had been going nearly non-stop. Straight from the planet to the space station to rescue Leia. Straight from the rescue to the battle above Yavin. Straight from the battle to full evacuation. His last two weeks were a whirlwind of life or death scenarios that he felt almost empty to be without anything to do.

As though summoned by his thoughts, Wedge popped before him, the two nearly colliding on the stairs.

"Luke!" The boy's face broke into a wide grin and he shifted the small crate in his arms to wave. "Where are you headed?"

Luke smiled back and shrugged. "Honestly, I have no idea."

Wedge's grin spread wider. "Perfect! You can come with me then!" He stepped around Luke and started back up the steps, not waiting to see if the other was following him. "I have to drop this off at the hangar for repairs, but then I'm free. Grab a bite with me and my, uh, friends!"

The way he stressed the final word made Luke cringe and he shook his head. "I don't think -"

"Luke, you're the hero of the rebellion. If you don't take advantage of that while you can, you're just not living big enough!"

"Getting to know new _friends_ isn't exactly why I did it, you know."

Wedge shrugged, laughing. "Consider it a benefit then for all your hard work! These people haven't heard the story yet and I'm sure they'd just die to know what you pulled off out there."

"I don't know…"

"Well, what else are you gonna do? Wander around here waiting for the Princess with that sad look on your face?"

Luke flushed pink, then pale, his eyes shooting up to Wedge a few steps ahead of him. "I mean – I –not like that - "

The pilot laughed again, nearly doubled over as Luke stammered over himself. "Hey! Don't think we all haven't tried once or twice. She's cute and let's be honest, Yavin wasn't exactly filled with many choices."

Luke's allowed himself a small chuckle.

"But, none of us saved her from the empire and avenged her entire planet." A devilish smirk spread across Wedge's lips and Luke hopped the stairs parting them to smack the boy.

"Don't be stupid!"

"Well if you're not going to try for her..." Wedge trailed off with a laugh, his hands open, earlier offer floating in the air.

"Fine, fine!" Luke rolled his eyes. "If it will get you to shut up, I'll come with you!"

* * *

Leia sat in the silence of her quarters, scrolling through an inventory list on the small datapad in her hands, though she had long ago stopped paying attention. The small digital words and numbers blurred as her unfocused eyes stared beyond them, mind still stuck in the echoing hangar.

" _I need to know what you're planning to do."_

" _Well right now, I think I'm going to find this soft bed I've been promised." He said, stepping from underneath his precious ship, grease and filth staining his once white shirt._

" _Han, I'm serious!"_

" _Well, so am I."_

 _Leia sighed, exasperated. Didn't he understand she didn't want to be the one doing this? "I mean, what are you planning to do about us?"_

 _Han quirked a brow and moved a half-step closer toward Leia. She glowered and clarified, "Us, the Alliance?"_

 _He deflated a fraction, drawing back as though the word we fire. "Jeez. You really have a one-track mind, don't you?"_

" _We're trying to plan for something here and someone who's unreliable - "_

" _Unreliable?! I think I was pretty damn reliable when I saved you from that station and the kid from those fighters."_

 _She scoffed. "Showing up when you feel like it or being in the right place to get some credits isn't what reliable means."_

 _Han rolled his eyes. "What do you have against credits? I got my own problems and credits just happen to be the way to solve them."_

" _Except once you solve those problems, then what?" Leia crossed her arms, dark eyes blazing as she stared him down. "You fly off in your rust bucket for whatever cheap trick you can find?"_

" _Yeah, maybe!"_

" _And who does that help?!"_

" _Me!"_

" _Well maybe you should start thinking more about helping someone besides yourself."_

" _There it is! You and this damn rebellion. You're all a bunch of idealistic idiots, you know that?!" he leaned forward, hiss in his voice sharp. "You were just a baby when the empire took over, but I saw it. I saw what kind of power he grabbed overnight and the way everything good fell. You wanna go up against that kind of power with hope and some old fighters, be my guest, but I learned real quick that no one is looking out for anyone anymore."_

The datapad slipped from her hands, sharp corner jabbing into her thigh and snapping her from her thoughts. Leia sighed, tossing the device to the side. Han had stormed off after that and she hadn't the energy to follow him. She was too angry and too disheartened. She hadn't really had time to think of him outside of his chosen profession. About the life he lived before roaming the galaxy with that unbearable swagger. It didn't excuse his actions, in fact she questioned them even more, but she did see the glimmer of a human behind the façade. Sparks of someone, who like the rest of them, just wanted to survive.

She wasn't ready to give up on him. The Alliance needed all the help they could get and she had to admit, he was good help when he was there. She just needed to get him to stay there.

With another sigh, she closed her eyes. That, however, was a problem for tomorrow.

* * *

"One, two, three, four," Ben counted. "Good, faster. One, two, three, four. Good. You've got your father's skills."

Luke smiled, chest heaving as he swept, thrust, and slashed with the humming blue lightsaber to Ben's counts. A sheen of sweat caked his face, dust giving him smudges across his cheeks, but he paid it no mind. The Force sung within him as he wielded the blade, a sense, both familiar and foreign, filling him. He stepped back, slicing downward, deflecting an invisible blow and exhaled slowly.

"This would be a lot easier if you were here."

"I am here," Ben answered, disembodied voice filling the small chamber.

"I mean if I could see you."

"Yes, I imagine so. Even still, you are doing impressively well on description and instinct alone."

"I guess." The lightsaber zipped as Luke withdrew the blade, flopping against the cushioned benches that lined the training room. As much as the boy cherished learning more about what it meant to be a Jedi, he couldn't help feeling a lonesome burden came with the lessons. They trained in secret, in a closed and windowless room, and Ben forbade Luke from discussing his lessons with anyone. The boy understood, to an extent, but when Wedge hounded him on where the boy would vanish to, he just wished he had someone else to share the experience with. But he also didn't want to complain to Ben, to seem in anyway ungrateful for the time the old Jedi was taking to teach him. Luke sighed, running a hand through his tousled hair and stood, running through the forms again.

Ben took in his new apprentice, silently watching the boy's careful movements. He could feel Luke's conflict and his own doubt raged to match the boy's. Two decades ago, this all seemed like such a good idea. Now, as he observed the sheltered youth, surrounded by a war he could never fully understand, preparing for a battle that would change his life, Ben doubted he was properly equipped to handle it all. He sighed, drawing in the Force to center himself. But he had to. With Ariala…out of his reach… (he couldn't form the idea of anything worse) Luke was hope incarnate for so many years of planning. There was no choice anymore. He took another steadying breath and pulled on the wisdom others had passed down to him.

"Luke, that's enough of that."

The boy paused mid-swing, blade poised above his head and frowned, confused, to the air. "Did I do something wrong?"

Ben chuckled. "No, no. I think we should try something else today. Sword work was your father's favorite part of training, I thought you might enjoy it more as well, but you have a calmer heart than he did. Sit, there, and relax."

Still confused, Luke did as he was asked, retracting the glowing blade and sitting in the middle of the room, legs folded beneath him. He felt a slight tickle to his consciousness as, he assumed, Ben's presence moved closer to him.

"Close your eyes, breathe."

Again, Luke did as he was told drawing in slow, steady breaths.

"Good. Do you still feel the Force?"

Luke nodded, the feeling still vibrating silently in the back of his mind.

"Open yourself to it. Let it in."

"How?" Luke asked, a wall seeming to exist between himself and the feeling.

"Let go."

His face screwed up, confused by the vague instructions, but he tried as best he could to release whatever Ben meant. He exhaled long breaths, pushed away thought and focused only on the feeling, tugging at it like a stubborn dewback. Then, almost all at once, the wall slipped away and he was bowled over by the full mass of the feeling, a sense of being outside of himself washing over him.

Luke's eyes snapped open, colors and lights dancing before his eyes, his mind reeling with the sudden awareness.

"Luke."

"Ben." Out of habit, he turned to the voice, eyes wide as the prismatic orbs melded and flowed into a shape similar to Ben's face. "I…I can see you?"

The light-face smiled, then fell apart, the Jedi's voice as encompassing as before. "I've not yet mastered full separation from the Force, but I am here, as I told you."

Luke stared at the spot for a few moments more, the world slowly slipped back into normal focus. "That's…the Force?"

"At its core, yes. The power that binds the universe."

Luke exhaled slowly, the sensation of the Force still strong against his mind. "How am I supposed to control it?"

"Through practice and meditation," Ben answered with a bit of a chuckle. "Now, close your eyes again, and try to concentrate on just one part of it. Find your center in the storm."

Rather eagerly, the boy obeyed, shutting his eyes tightly and diving back into the colorful world. Strands of life fluttered around him and though he was curious about all of them, Luke forced himself to focus inward - or rather to the thing that was him- seeing the somehow unique and similar strand of his presence. He took hold of it, and it seemed again that he was outside of himself, his own memories playing in perfect detail as through a holo-cording.

Then the emotions came.

Flashes of Beru, Owen, Biggs and a dozen other Tatooine faces whipped across the Force and with each he remembered himself as he was in that moment. Anger, sadness, happiness, loneliness, calm.

He snatched on to the calm, desperate to get his mind under control.

" _You can't win everything, Skywalker."_

 _A wiry, thirteen-year-old Luke rolled his eyes and kicked the sand, not yet ready to let go of the bitter taste of loss. His new-to-him T-16 had been his main hope of finally getting some recognition in the races at Beggar's Canyon, but the ship's engine had overheated in the final lap and his assured second place victory now sat in the hands of Carmie Marstrap. And she had not been nice about stealing his win._

" _At least it wasn't cuz you're bad at it, right?"_

" _That's what makes it even worse, Ari!" he threw up his hands, eyes catching the matching blue of his friend. "I would have won if it weren't for the stupid engine!"_

 _She shrugged, nonplused by his frustration. "Yeah, but you can fix that. Whenever I fail at something, Ben usually tells me to just practice harder, but that sometimes things are just out of our control."_

" _It's just not fair."_

" _Not today, that's for sure. But tomorrow, or the next day, it might be. There's a will out there that we just don't know about. Sometimes it's good to wait and let it do what it's going to do."_

 _As always, he had no idea what she was talking about, but she said it such conviction he couldn't help but be swayed. He sighed and shrugged, as much acquiesce as he would allow her to see, and she flashed him a brief smile in return._

"Ari…"

Ben felt the boy's focus sharpen and his own heart run cold. No. "Luke!"

But Luke didn't hear him, the Force dragging the boy to the one he spoke of. His calm was replaced with pain, his own memories with snapshots of her life that whirled by too fast to make sense of.

Ben felt the Force rumble, the boy's power spiraling out of his conscious control. He pushed out with his own mind, grabbing hold of Luke's presence and violently snatching him back to the quiet room.

Abruptly, she was snatched away from him again. "Ari!" he whipped around, eyes wild before he realized where he was. "I saw her…I think…" He glanced up to where he had last seen the old Jedi. "Ben, I think she's in real trouble. We have to help her!"

The old man clamped down his own dark thoughts, answering with an indifference he did not feel. "The Force shows many things, not all are true or current. You will learn to control it better, in time."

Luke shook his head, disbelieving. "It felt so real…"

Ben pushed harder. He had to make Luke forget. "As did your own memories?"

"Yeah…"

"The Force has no beginning or end. All time passes through it at once. It takes a skilled mind to decipher what one is shown. Even my old masters struggled to see clearly."

Luke sighed, heart still hammering. He wanted to believe it, so he did, because the alternative was too dark to bear.

"I think we've done quite enough today," Ben continued when Luke's silence stretched on. "Go, rest your mind. We can return to all of this later."

 _xxxxx_

It took Luke nearly a fortnight to fully put the meditation session behind him, and in that time Ben focused any training solely on his swordsmanship and Jedi history despite Luke's insistence he was ready for more. It was in one of these sessions that Leia found Luke, watching from the doorway as he danced with the glowing blue sword. When he finally came to a stop, wiping sweat from his brow, she called to him, stepping in with a wave.

"Leia!" Now that he thought about it, he had barely seen her over the past weeks, her duties and his training calling them in different directions.

She pointed at the still ignited saber and smiled. "Looks like you're getting pretty good at that."

He shrugged, smiling abashed. "I guess. It's harder than it looks. Be-" he cut himself short, suddenly realizing the old man's presence was gone, the void reminding him of his secrecy. Hurriedly, he retracted the blade, and grabbed a towel, words tumbling out. "Been working it out, though. What brings you down here?"

If Leia noticed his awkward shift, she said nothing, sliding instead to a bench and crossing her fingers under her chin. "Han, actually."

"What'd he do, now?"

Leia shook her head. "Nothing. That's the problem. His ship is loaded, fueled and ready, and he barely has any belongings in the quarters assigned to him, but he's still here?" She frowned. "I can't tell if he plans to stay or not and the generals are hounding me for an answer. They want him to join the pilots but -" She sighed exasperated, shaking her head.

Luke plopped in a seat across from her, quiet.

"I tried talking to him…" she continued with a scoff. "That didn't go well."

"Sorry…"

"I was hoping, maybe you could talk to him."

"Me?"

"He likes you. Maybe you'll have better luck convincing him to stay and help."

Luke laughed. "I don't quite know if I'd say he likes me."

"More than me, that's for sure." She leaned back, resting her head on the wall. It was something she had debated for a while, asking someone else to do her work, but this was really the only choice if she wanted Han's answer to be yes. Sighing again, she spoke softly, staring at the ceiling. "I think he wants to help, somewhere under all that selfishness. I just think, he's been on his own for so long he doesn't know how to be a part of something." She brought her eyes back to meet Luke's. "If he had someone give him a reason…a choice…maybe he would be willing to give it a try."

To be honest, Luke had already made up his mind – it was Leia asking after all - though he had no idea how he'd go about it. Han was more than abrasive and, while he and Luke had found some common ground being the heroes that saved Yavin, the boy had no illusions that he and Han were friends. Still, Leia was right – Han was needed here – and he would do his best.

She must have read his thoughts, because Leia was smiling even as he nodded and accepted the challenge. "Thank you! I'm certain you can persuade him."

The boy shrugged. "Should be a breeze."

* * *

He held up a single gloved hand and the whirring, buzzing, zipping, and crackling that filled the little red room, fell to an abrupt halt. In the void, her ragged, dry sobs echoed all the clearer and the dark lord took a moment to appreciate the sound. His young, broken, Jedi prisoner hung limply against the slab, heart racing, breath shallow, blood staining the floor beneath her. The wires and needles protruding from her arms seemed to be the only thing holding her erect.

Darth Vader's treatment upon the young girl held no mercy, her face, her very existence, a consistent, maddening reminder of his losses. His torment upon her was thorough, every device and technique at his disposal thrown at her at once. He stepped closer, lifting her face, prodding her arms, examining the effect of his many apparatuses.

Ariala tried to pull away, tried to gather the strength to even stop her head from flopping when he dropped it, but there was little left in her. Her throat was bloody from screaming, her face raw from tears, her skin ashen from malnourishment. Her scarred and bruised body trembled uncontrollably. She had forgotten words, forgotten even why she was enduring this and Vader had not asked again. At some point, he realized she did not know, but that had not stopped him.

Vader now yearned for her pain to feed his own. Her unconscious mind delving unfettered into the Force memory unlocked parts of him, parts he often fought to keep buried, but through her eyes he found them addictive. His responsibilities fell to the wayside. Once the emperor had been informed about the Alliance's success, it fell to him to end the threat, but even that he held little attention for.

The hunt for the rebellion fell to his officers and though he knew they whispered about how often he spent in the "red room", the Sith could not care. He left only when he had to, when pulled away, or when she was too close to death. Yet, even in those times, he was not lenient. In the rare downtimes, he kept her drugged under heavy sedatives mixed with serum from the mind probe. She had no reprieve. If she ate, it was forced; if she slept it was because she was unconscious.

In this way, drowned in nothing but a mass of agony, days turned to months, as Ariala struggled with the last corner of her power to resist breaking entirely. But her tie to sanity, to control, was but a thread fraying quickly under the endless barrage.

The door buzzed suddenly, dragging both minds from their musing, Vader only waving a hand and allowing it to open. Ozzel stood in the threshold, eyes clearly avoiding landing on any single aspect of the room.

"What is it, Admiral?"

"Lord Vader, the emperor demands to speak with you."

"Very well. I will contact him shortly."

Ozell fidgeted, swallowing hard before pressing on. "Shall I tell him to wait then?"

The skull-like face of Vader's mask turned slowly to face the officer and Ozell was almost certain he could see a wide-eyed glare pierce him through the black lenses. He forced himself to continue. "He is here, my lord."

Abruptly, the massive surge of Sidious's power slammed into the dark lord. He nearly crumpled to his knees, his master's might blocking out all thought, a command to go to him ringing in his head.

Vader cast a single glance toward his prisoner, then, swept from the room.

 _xxxxx_

The Sith master sat in the open hyperbaric chamber, the blinding white walls clashing against the shadows of his darkness. His hands gently caressed the Jedi lightsaber, feeling her constant pressure rumbling through the Force. For some time, he had felt the presence that cropped up beside his apprentice, and carefully he monitored it for any sign that should concern him.

The Jedi were a race on the edge of extinction, so it did not bother him too much, at first, that Vader had captured one to play with. But the younger Sith was blind to too much and Sidious refused to let it go on any longer.

The door to Vader's quarters slid opened, the rightful owner striding in with two long steps, the latter bracing him as he stooped to a respectful kneel. "I was not aware you had left Imperial Center."

In other words, _what are you doing here?_ Sidious smirked. "Indeed. You have been distracted from a great many things, Lord Vader."

Wisely, the apprentice did not speak.

"You have put an end to this rebellion?" Sidious crooned.

"No."

"Ah." A pause. "Then you have dealt with the cell that destroyed my weapon?" A bit more bite in his words.

Again, "No."

"Well," the emperor continued, a dry cackle bubbling from his throat "You have at least located their base?"

Vader did not answer. He did not need to.

"No!" Sidious suddenly barked. "You have achieved nothing since your overwhelming failure but to play with a Jedi whelp!" He flung the saber across the room, deftly striking the curved side Vader's helmet. Again, the apprentice did not speak.

"Tell me why you have allowed her to live."

"She may be of use to us in locating and extinguishing - "

"Do not try to fool me, Vader. I can see your mind. You have long known she holds no useful information." Sidious took a deep breath, hissing out as he spoke. "Again. Tell me why you have allowed her to live."

A long, tense silence ran between them, the master's presence bearing down on his apprentice. Finally, at length, Vader answered. "I have enjoyed watching her break."

Sidious's lips curled into a sneer and he laughed. "Yes, yes. Good." His laughter trailed off. "And what did you plan to do about her unstable power?" He felt Vader's confusion. It boiled his ire. With a flick of his wrist, the Sith lord crashed unceremoniously into the far wall, limbs splayed as Sidious held him there. Vader's own anger flared but it was quickly flattened under Sidious's omnipresence.

"You have been ignorant, apprentice. With each move you make to break her, you tear her restraint." The Sith master stood, hobbling across the room. The pressure on Vader's form increased; the heavy armor bowing. "She is strong with the Force and it feeds on her fear. You may have broken her body, but her strength has grown." Another push, sparks cracking from the control panel on Vader's suit. "Grown beyond your control." Suddenly he was free, dropping to the ground with a resounding thud, tangled in the folds of his cape.

"But not mine." The Force unfolded before Sidious's sight, and his anger melted away into conniving calm. "Take me to her.

Vader did not move, rage bubbling. His fingers twitched for his blade and he contemplated if he would be fast enough. Yellow eyes leveled on him from beneath the heavy, old robe. He would not. Pulling himself up, the Sith gave a stiff bow.

Sidious watched Vader's back as they walked through the halls of the _Executor,_ nervous soldiers and officers flinging themselves out of their path. One day, Darth Vader may be a threat, he thought. But the boy was still too much the fool he turned so many years ago. He grinned again before turning his attention back to the grey aura that was the Jedi's uncultured power. He could still sense the freckles of the light side, like dying stars, but they were few and far between, much of her strength hovering on an edge.

As the door to the little room slid open, his grin widened. "Such raw power."

Vader stepped to the side, Sidious moving directly toward the prisoner. "Yes…yes." Fear, lonesomeness, pain, he felt them snaked around her. Oh yes, he could do wonders with her.

"Perhaps, my young friend," he started, purring old platitudes to Vader, "you have done something useful after all. You have broken her; I will rebuild her. Move her to my shuttle," he said, the last part an order to the troopers that flanked the room.

"Master…" the question died in his throat even before Vader could speak it. _What about the rule of two?_

"You do not need to be so concerned. She will not replace you," Sidious said with a raspy chuckle. "Yet."

* * *

It was everything she had imagined, the glittering Galactic City. Twilight streaked a mauve haze across the sky and a million lights from a million buildings blinked into existence. Twenty levels of speeders zipped through the air in neat, crisscrossing lanes. A beautiful, bustling paradise more populated that Tatooine could ever dream to be, more modern than Alderaan would have ever reached. It was everything she had imagined, but she was too broken to appreciate it.

Five days had passed since Sidious brought her to the palace on Imperial Center and while her physical wounds were well on the mend, her mind and spirit were still too shattered. The young girl barely remembered anything about how she had come to be here, flashes of Force memory still burned in her brain and echoes of friendly voices with Vader's torture blurred so she truly questioned just who had hurt her. Too many times on that block she had seen a friendly face lead the torment, soft smiles with cruel hands, peaceful words and unbearable pain. So many times, that the faces lost meaning, 'kindness' become a foreign word, 'friend' a fantasy.

She pulled herself into a smaller ball, pressed tightly against the walls of the medical facility she now found herself in. She wore no restraints, had no guards, and she was pretty certain the door was not locked, but the young girl would not dare move. The Force roared around her, ever present, suffocating. She stuffed her ears and closed her eyes, desperate to shut it out. A niggling in the back of her heart told her she could have comfort if she just reached out, called for…someone – she couldn't remember who – but she couldn't bear it. Her training was forgotten, control broken. For all she'd spent her life learning, the young girl on the floor was little more now than a child.

From just beyond the room, Sidious's signature sneer widened, her swirling presence fodder for his plans. Sliding the door opened, the old man stepped in, his own power molded and manipulating, a calm in the Force. He felt her subconscious latch to it as a babe to the teat. Still, she pulled physically further away, saucer-wide eyes watching him.

And he in turn watched her. Each of his pawns had taken specific pruning to be of absolute loyalty to him. With Maul it had been purpose, Dooku needed only truth, and Vader craved power. This one, he saw, needed belonging. He stepped forward, slowly removing the over-sized hood that covered his scarred face, twisting it into a mask of warm concern. Blue eyes stared into yellow. He stepped forward again, closing the gap. She pressed herself further against the wall.

"There, there, my child," Sidious purred, weathered hands gently reaching for hers. She twitched and flinched away from him but his hold was firm. "You don't have to be haunted by the past anymore. I'm here for you, young one. And I'll never abandon you."

 **To be continued….**


	9. Vicenious

**Chapter 8: Vicenious**

Obi-Wan exhaled slowly, extending his mind in search for the one he called daughter, and prayed this time would be different. The Force ebbed beyond his awareness, parting calmly as his focus intensified on her presence flickering at the edge of a long tunnel. Obi-Wan raced toward it, reached out, and as had happened every other time he tried, heavy darkness rolled in. His way turned cloudy, path lost, and his pupil unreachable.

The Jedi drew back into himself and sighed heavily. He was not blind to what surrounded her, though he tried desperately to believe it was anything else. He couldn't have failed twice…

"You are only tormenting yourself, Obi-Wan."

Obi-Wan sighed again, the voice that spoke his name as welcome as it was ill-timed. He turned and gave Qui-Gon Jinn a respectful nod. "She is more than worth it."

Qui-Gon quirked a brow, hands clasped calmly behind his back. "You've forgotten your teachings in your old age."

"You're still older than me, master."

"Quite. And wiser." He added. "So, you would do well to listen to me."

Begrudgingly, Obi-Wan agreed in silence. No matter how many years older he looked compared to his master, Qui-Gon's wisdom was something he would forever admire and respect. It was he, after all, who aided Obi-Wan in achieving the very skill that now allowed them to speak.

Qui-Gon gestured to the area below them and sat – or rather crossed his legs and sunk below Obi-Wan's line of sight in what appeared to be sitting – and Obi-Wan followed.

"You doubt yourself," his master said at length. "You've become unsure."

Obi-Wan nodded. Though it had started the moment he sent her away, his self-doubt had grown into an untamable beast as over two years of silence spread since the Battle of Yavin and the last time he had been able to reach Ariala's mind. Over two years since she was lost to the shadows.

"You fear what you know to be true," Qui-Gon continued. "You deny what has already been proven."

"I cannot accept that she has…" he couldn't bring himself to say it.

"That she has turned."

The words sunk like a stone into Obi-Wan's gut. "I failed her," he whispered, distraught. "I failed them both."

"Oh?" Qui-Gon stroked his beard thoughtfully. "How so?"

"I should have taught them better, guided them better. Seen the darkness that would break them!"

"Achieving what so many other masters have failed?"

"Yes!"

"As even Yoda failed to do with his own apprentice?"

Obi-Wan's frustration faltered and he met Qui-Gon's eyes with a shadow of shame in his own.

"A turn to the dark side is not one that can be foreseen or prophesized," Qui-Gon continued, voice soft and measured. "It is a path of corruption, clouded by rampant emotion. To predict anything of the dark side, from beyond its power, is impossible, Obi-Wan." Suddenly Qui-Gon was beside his student, gentle hand on Obi-Wan's shoulder. "And so, it is impossible to have failed."

Still, Obi-Wan shook his head. "And yet it is evident that I have." When his master did not speak, Obi-Wan pressed on. "I was too young when I took on Anakin, too worried about living up to your image. And too old when I took on Ariala. Too scarred." He drew a shuddering breath, the weight of his inadequacies bearing down on him. "I can't lead Luke down their path."

"This is why you have slipped in his teachings."

It was not a question. Both masters knew it was the truth. Shortly after Obi-Wan noticed the first changes in Ariala, he had pulled back his time spent with Luke. Fortunately, his absence went unnoticed as Luke dove head-first into aiding the Alliance.

"He needs a teacher." Qui-Gon continued, voice heavy. "He's their only hope now."

Obi-Wan shook his head again. "It's too dangerous. He has the Skywalker blood. If we, _if I_ , lose him too…"

"You must trust in the Force." His master fell silent, meditative in the power around them. Slowly, the Force melted to his requests, a path – one of many possible futures – unfurling before them.

Hope breathed life into Obi-Wan. "There is still one who can steer him."

"He will not take him."

"He must."

Despite the heavy, fur-lined, multiple layers he wore, the damp and ice-coated clothing did little to protect Luke from the raging blizzard. Head still spinning from the wompa's heavy blow, body trembling with shock and cold, Luke trekked awkwardly through the knee-high snow, relying on nothing but instinct to guide him. All around, the icy dunes of Hoth were obscured as wind whipped pellets of ice and snow into grey-skied frenzy.

He took another faltering step, knees buckling. Luke flopped face first into the powder, arms barely flinging out to catch him. The impact shook the breath from his lungs and for a terrifying moment, he gaped like a dying fish, for air. When it rushed back into him, the cold felt as knives to his insides sending him into a dizzying coughing fit. Beyond whatever wounds the snow creature had inflicted upon him in the surprise attack, the bitter wintry air was sapping him of strength and energy. Despite his subconscious warnings, he failed to find urgency in returning to his feet. The ground was soft and he was so very tired.

"Luke."

Go away, the boy thought, heavy lids drooping.

"Luke!" Ben's voice carried a stronger sense of urgency and Luke instinctively turned toward it. He squinted into the snow, white on white on grey blurring the translucent figure of a man.

"Ben?" _I must be going crazy…_ Still, Luke reached out a hand.

The wizened Jedi took a moment to examine his pupil. He would have preferred to give these instructions under different circumstances, when there was more time to explain, but the Force was pushing things into action faster than he could plan. Ben sighed and pressed on, imbuing his words with the power of the Force. "Luke, you will go to the Dagobah system."

Luke frowned, but weakly repeated, "Dagobah system…"

"There you will learn from Yoda, the Jedi Master who instructed me."

"Yoda…"

Ben felt the words sink into Luke's mind, implanting there with a hungry need that would ensure the boy followed through. He only hoped he was doing the right thing.

The braying of a disgruntled tauntaun dragged him from his task and Ben slipped away as Luke's rescuer pulled up beside him.

Han leapt from the saddle even before his mount came to a complete stop, a dagger of fear in his heart as he took in the boy's prone and snow-covered form. "Don't do this, Luke. Come on, give me a sign here." Han's hands worked awkwardly, jostling the boy onto his back until Luke finally let out a weak groan, eyes fluttering. Han sighed, relief flooding through him, and turned his attention toward the growing storm. His footsteps were already buried, the path he made fully obscured, and – as though to pile on his stress – the tauntaun he had dragged into the cold, keeled over with a final grunt. _So much for getting back tonight…_

Luke moaned again, drawing the pirate's attention back to the boy still cradled in his arms. Luke was obviously delirious and sporting ugly welts across his face which glowed against the boy's paling skin. He had to get Luke out of the direct elements but it was clear Luke's condition was too perilous for him to wait while the shelter was erected. _If only that stupid creature had held out a bit longer…_ Han cast a glance at the tauntaun's body, lightly steaming in the cold air, and cringed at the idea already blossoming in his mind. Looking back at Luke, weakly muttering gibberish, Han sighed and fumbled to unclip the lightsaber the boy always wore.

He held the blue sword inelegantly, larger hands choking the hilt, and sliced deeply into the tauntaun's blubbery carcass. Instantly, the stench of old fat coating musty fur assaulted his nose and Han pedaled back for fresh air. "And I thought they smelled bad on the outside…"

After a few deep breaths and a gathering of determination, the pilot launched into the opening, tearing out the creature's innards until a decent cavity remained, large enough into which he could stuff most of Luke's shivering, unconscious body.

" _Did you know," Sidious crooned gently as he stroked the slumbering girl's head. "That she is a child of Anakin Skywalker?"_

 _Vader felt the acid swirling just beneath the question and despite years of pushing that life aside, forgetting it as his own, it flashed through his mind like a personal attack. He had been able to fully bury nearly every aspect of his old life, seeing it as though watching through disconnected eyes, save for one: Amidala._

 _The love he turned toward darkness to protect would never truly leave his heart, and he could not see her face in his memories without old, raw, bleeding love erupting within him. It had been easier to simply not acknowledge that corner of his heart than to corrupt it, but now that choice seemed ready to strangle him. A child; a daughter; his daughter;_ _ **her**_ _daughter._

 _His eyes flickered over her face and his heart struggled against crying out. The same gentle rounded cheeks, long nose, proud chin, narrow neck...the broken Jedi was a nearly perfect replicate and it wounded him to see. He could not question it, could not swear that Sidious lied to test his apprentice._

 _Vader forced his eyes away, lowering them to the floor, as he reigned his wild emotions under control. Just because his master told the truth did not make this a test. Such a visceral reaction would only further strengthen Sidious's concern that Vader could no longer be kept under thumb._

 _Fear of the punishment such failure would elicit cooled his mind quickly and Vader clung to it. From beyond his thoughts, he felt Sidious's pleasure._

 _Vader raised his face to meet his master once again, finally answering. "No, master."_

 _Sidious weighed the sincerity of the answer, silent as he probed his student's mind. Vader's internal response had been expected, but more important was how quickly the passion fled. The dark master's face split in a toothy, crooked snarl that passed for a smile. For now, at least, Vader remained his. "She is not alone," he continued, tone softer as though speaking idly about the weather. "It seems that Skywalker also had a son."_

 _Despite himself, the reigns on his heart slackened, briefly, and a new wave of conflicted pride shot through Vader. He quickly squashed it down but held no pretense that Sidious had not also felt it._

 _If he did, the old man made no sign. "You have already encountered him, it seems. Tell me, my friend, of the child who destroyed my Death Star?"_

Two years had passed since that conversation, yet Vader could still recall every word as though Sidious were still whispering them now. A hunger spread in the dark lord, to find Skywalker's son – _his son –_ and it almost consumed him. But it was not for Sidious that Vader felt such urgency to capture Luke Skywalker of Tatooine, but for himself. It took years to accept the truth for what it was, but Vader knew he needed to do this. Sidious's lies had lived too long, as had the man himself, and his master could not be allowed to take anything more from him.

Vader exhaled deeply, the silence of his hyperbolic chamber echoing the sound in his exposed ears. Slowly, he replayed the list that kept him focused; the list of all Sidious had snatched from the man once known as Anakin. Honor, pride, morality, friend, brother, wife, daughter, life. With each repetition he felt his anger spike then plummet into the chasm that was his broken heart, ingraining itself into every nerve.

The Sith had long ago come to accept the monster Sidious created; no matter what happened now, he could never return to the path of Jedi. He was Vader; he craved power too deeply; knew darkness too well to ever let it go. But the new realizations still burned with a fervor that kept his rage alive.

Carefully, as though laying them out neatly for display, he examined his anguish.

Amidala. His beloved Padme' for whom his heart yearned always. For over twenty years, his love came with the cold snap of betrayal in the lie that he killed his wife. But dead people don't birth children. No matter what his memory replayed – her tear stained face, gasping for breath on the shores of Mustafar – somehow, _somehow_ she had survived. At least for a while. A quick investigation into her life proved that Amidala was truly dead, not long after those events. The royal court of Naboo built a memorial garden in her honor, her resting place a flowering tomb in the shadow of the palace. He refused to visit it. He had no right. He would only taint her final, beautiful memory. Just as he'd done with the little Jedi.

A twisting wave of guilt and hatred roiled in his gut. He had never even learned her name, but that did not diminish how intimately the Sith had torn her apart. Her screams, once a symphony, now haunted his rest. Her eyes – piercing blue as Anakin's had once been – pleaded 'why'. _You're breaking my heart._ He could never undo it, never take back what had been done, because now (and this is where his hatred kicked in) she was Sidious's.

His precious daughter, jewel of Anakin and Padme's love, was a shattered, perverse pet of the cruelest thing the universe ever created. What Vader had torn apart, Sidious rebuilt, tying himself in the girl's desperately lonesome heart. Fear did not keep her at his side; a one-sided love made her unflappably loyal. And such manipulative devotion kept her spoiled. There was little of the young girl left in Darth Vicenious.

She was ruthlessly violent and bloodthirsty, the reports of her undertakings littered with purposeless causalities for which she had been honored to credit. As a leader Vicenious paraded her position and power without grace or class, well aware she was the emperor's favorite. Again, Vader felt the sizzle of hatred set his flesh aflame. It was his work that made her so malleable. His wisdom which saw her potential. And she should have been his apprentice; his tool to overthrow the old man and take his proper place in the ancient Rule of Two. Sidious had not only stolen his child, but his chance for freedom.

He could not allow it to happen again.

Determined, Vader forced his attention outward, to the mission which dragged his Death Squadron to the far reaches of space. The hunt for Skywalker – and in turn the Rebellion - was not an easy task.

Since the search began, he had been conductor of an increasingly irritating game of cat and mouse and he was tired of chasing their tail. Countless times, rebel bands had escaped his grasp or captured prisoners broke without giving solid leads. The few cells and missions his Squadron had intercepted and destroyed were miniscule in comparison with the fact that most of the Alliance went untouched.

His most recent method was proving just as fruitless. Countless probes had been dropped in over a dozen systems, yet again and again they returned with no useful information. He would not and could not take much longer. Sidious was patient, if only because he could read the future, but he would not wait forever to bring Luke Skywalker to heel.

The dark lord scowled, fingers curling into tight fists on the arm of his chair. That pressure was great enough, yet to add kindling to his rage, he also had to play chaperone to his failed protégé. Simply having her in the same system of space, let alone as commander to the _Devastator_ within his fleet, was every bit the slap in the face Sidious clearly intended. Yet, his determination to be rid of her fueled the search for the rebellion. In mere weeks, the majority of the sector between the hyperspace lanes judged as most likely to house to Alliance had been cleared; though the lack of results did not aide his mood.

Vader begrudgingly returned to the reports at hand, eyes crossing over the information, before once again disregarding it all. He knew, even without completing the work, they were not here. The Force was too calm, too passive for him to have found what he so desperately wanted.

He flicked his wrist again, a com-channel opening to the bridge. "Admiral."

Ozzel's voice crackled back from the other side, "Yes, Lord Vader."

"They are not here. Withdraw the droids and move to the next sector."

"Of course, my lord."

Leia sighed yet again, re-crossing her arms tightly across her chest. The small medical bay felt even tighter as she continued to watch Luke slowly recover in the bacta tank.

The stone of fear that had weighed down her chest all night still refused to dissipate despite the scene before her. The doctors and medical droids had all assured her Luke would recover, had all praised Han for his quick thinking that saved the boy's life, and had all guaranteed that Luke would suffer no lasting effects from either the cold or the attack. But despite the comforting words, Leia still found herself glued to this spot, watching every second as Luke twitched and bobbed in the healing liquid.

His time with the Rebellion had strengthened her feelings for him into something she could not find words to describe. But she knew, whatever it was, that she cared deeply for him, more than she did for any other rebel, yet different than the warring feelings she had for Han.

The thought of the smuggler made her sigh again, eyes flickering to where he stood leaning against the tank. She would never forget that it was thanks to Luke that Han stuck around after Yavin and as she predicted, he had been a great help. His unorthodox flying tactics were vital in teaching new pilots quickly and his numerous underground contacts had helped them secure many a delivery. It was for these highly logical and very valid reasons, the young woman told herself, that she was so ecstatic about his presence and why it felt like Alderaan was exploding again whenever he threatened to leave.

A flicker of motion in the corner of her eye dragged Leia's attention back to the tank; back to Luke. Han had been about to leave just before this, too. The conversation still rang in her ears adding to her stresses. Why was it so hard to talk to him? She had tried to be diplomatic, addressing his importance to the rebellion and calmly pointing out that he had made a commitment but the fool of a man just side-railed the entire conversation for yet another misguided, self-serving, tirade about something that existed only in his imagination!

Her sigh came out more exasperated this time, and when she caught his eyes watching her, her brow shifted from worry to frustration. There were better things to occupy her mind than some flaky, conceited, chiseled jaw pirate. With a huff, Leia turned on her heel, poised to storm from the room. Only the sound of the medical equipment behind her, monitoring Luke's progress held her still.

Her heart thudded heavily at the increasing beeps, the sound that had only moments ago been slow and steady in conjunction with Luke's sedated heart rate. Cautiously, she peered back over her shoulder and her knees nearly gave out under her. Bright, if not somewhat confused, blue eyes peered back at her from within the tank as the bacta fluid drained. Luke…Luke was awake. The relief that rocketed through her system crushed the stone in her chest with a solid blast and Leia breathed a sigh that for the first time days wasn't loaded.

He – _everything_ – really was going to be okay.

"I think we've got something, sir." Ozzel turned to the young captain, a tired frown permanently etched on the Admiral's face. Being the commander of Vader's ship was more headache than glory and he was at his wits end.

"What is it, Piett?"

Piett swallowed stiffly at the bite in his superior's voice. "The report is only a fragment from a probe droid in the Hoth system, but it's the best lead we've had."

"We have thousands of probe droids searching the galaxy," Ozzel snapped back. "I want proof, not leads!"

"The visuals indicate life readings…" Piett pressed on.

"So have over two dozen other planets! If we followed every lead - "

"But, sir, the Hoth system is supposed to be devoid of human forms."

Ozzel's jaw clenched, eyes darkening at the smaller man before him. Piett was fairly new to the ship, not long from the Academy and while he clearly had potential, it took more than that to be a surviving crew member on this particular ship. He opened his mouth to set the younger man straight, when the familiar cold shadow of his own superior loomed over.

"You have found something?" Vader's voice boomed in his ear.

Ozzel swallowed stiffly, his mouth dry and tongue thick, preventing him from forming words. He snapped his jaw shut, refusing to seem bumbling idiot, and Piett took the silence as his opportunity.

"Yes, my lord," the captain piped, stepping to the side and giving the dark lord a clear view of the screen. "I believe we have located their base."

Even before Vader fully took in the shape of the sloping metal structure on the screen, he knew they had finally found them. The Force screamed at him, a siren-like wail that wound deeply into his mind. "That's it. The Rebels are there."

"M-my Lord," Ozzel stammered, having found his voice in disbelief. "There are so many uncharted settlements. It could be smugglers - "

"That is the system." Vader interrupted, impatience making his voice sharp. "Set your course for the Hoth system. General," he turned to Veers who had been silently watching the display. "Prepare your men."

The Sith did not wait for their acknowledgement of his orders, sweeping from the bridge. More important than having found the Rebel base, was his certainty that Skywalker was with them. The thought was enough to ignite something akin to jubilation within his heart. With one swift stroke he would erase two great threats from the Empire.

Skywalker, which at their first encounter had been merely Force-sensitive, had grown in power and potential enough for the Sith to take notice. Though their interactions had been short and indirect, Vader could sense the change clearly. The Force clung to Skywalker like a web, ever expanding as he perfected his abilities. In truth, the boy was still very far from reigning in and controlling the Force, but Vader was all too aware what could happen if he did.

His lips contorted into a sneer, joy giving way to displeasure, as the Force flashed images of that particular future. It would not come to pass. With Kenobi dead and his apprentice corrupted, Skywalker was truly the last obstacle that could pose any threat. Capturing him – or killing as Vader greatly preferred – was paramount. The boy could not escape again.

His mind raged, fleeting happiness forgotten as cold determination and boiling vengeance returned to the forefront of his thoughts. Dealing with Skywalker was also the key to resolving his current predicament with the emperor and that weight was a crushing force. Until this moment, it had been only red hunger that drove him, but now, with victory so tightly in his grasp, Vader felt deeply all he had to lose as well as all he had to gain. Again, the Force flashed possible images before his eyes and the dark lord waved them away violently.

The door to his chambers greeted him, finally, and he stepped into his hyperbolic chamber, metal arms going to work to free him of his armor. Tactic and plan raced beneath a sheer desire to win and the Sith felt unbalanced by the surging emotions. He could not risk being blinded by desire when so much hung on this moment.

With a shaky exhale, the Sith forced himself to sit, and once again buried himself in the pain that made him who he was.

Captain Piett and General Veers exchanged knowing glances as they hovered just beyond the older admiral. Ozzel stared silently at the blipping console before him, willing the warning to go away. _Shield detected. Maximum power. Time to disable at current weapon's strength: unknown._

Beyond the window, the diamond-like Hoth – namesake of the system - glittered in the sun's rays, mockingly serene against his internal panic. How they had acquired a shield of this power and size, he could hardly imagine, but it was the least of his concerns. Maintaining such protection constantly would have easily drained their power cells, which meant, somehow, the rebels had been alerted to their presence and raised the shield only recently. His trembling hands curled into fists. It was too late to contemplate that now. If the shield was active, it meant the rebels were still on the surface. An attack still had to be made.

"General." Ozzel spun around, a mask of calm authority falling over his features. Veers snapped to attention. "Inform Lord Vader of our current situation, then, prepare for an assault. You are still in charge of this mission, after all." The last bit he added with a hint of a grin and Veers felt ice snake into his veins. Nevertheless, the man nodded stiffly as he accepted the order and took the path that surely led to his death.

Vader's quarters took up most of the aft section of this same level, successfully isolating their domineering leader while also providing him quick access to his bridge, though the walk seemed much longer considering the purpose. Since his assignment to this ship four years ago, Veers had kept his head down and worked solidly, floating low enough on the radar to avoid Vader's direct attention, yet high enough as to be recognized when he did well. This whole incident, however, threatened to disrupt that perfect balance.

Despite his concern, Veers did not drag his feet or hang his head, posture solid as befitting his position. Vader was terrifying and his temper as unreadable as a road in fog, but there was little Veers had done worthy of inciting his wrath. He clung to that thought, and the bare facts of their current situation, as he stepped within Vader's room.

The general paused for a moment at the threshold, blinking to adjust his eyes to the darkened room. The great globed chamber that took up the majority of the room was sealed, the bright light within blocked and throwing the room into bleak grayness. Only dim lighting outside the hyperbolic chamber allowed Veers enough light to cross the room just as the chamber slid open, Vader stationed within.

"What is it, General?"

Veers swallowed thickly and answered with as much authority as he could muster. "My lord, the fleet has moved out light-speed. However," Veers hesitated a moment and felt a swell of pressure fill the room as Vader clung to the word. "Com-Scan has detected an energy field protecting an area around the sixth planet of the Hoth system. The field is strong enough to deflect any bombardment."

"The rebels are alerted to our presence," Vader ground out, his recently tamed anger spiking. "Admiral Ozzel came out of light-speed too close to the system."

Veers let out a short sigh. At least he wasn't being blamed. Still, he should seem at least a little respectful of his superior. "He felt surprise was wiser…" The words trailed off, leaving his feelings on the matter vague.

"He is as clumsy as he is stupid. Prepare your troops for a surface attack."

"Yes, my lord."

As soon as the man was clear of the room, Vader whipped his chair around summoning the viewscreen of the bridge. Ozzel and Piett came into view, their backs to him, deep in discussion of their next move. As Ozzel turned to face him, mouth opening to give some excuse, Vader wiped away the words with his own acid-dipped response. "You have failed me for the last time, Admiral."

Ozzel again opened his mouth to speak, again only silence coming from his gaping lips.

Vader turned his attention to the young captain. "Piett."

The boy stepped forward, eyes darting to the side as Ozzel continued to gape, eyes now wide and hands flying toward his throat. It was a testament to the boy's focus that he did not react further, keeping his eyes trained on the screen.

"Make ready to land our troops beyond the energy field," Vader continued. "And deploy the fleet so that nothing gets off that system."

Just behind Piett, Ozzel let out a final ragged breath, collapsing beneath the screen.

"You are in command now, Admiral Piett."

Once again, the boy's eyes flickered to the now ex-admiral, his promotion coming with the obvious threat ' _you're next should you also fail'_. "Thank you, Lord Vader."

The screen flickered into darkness, and for one swift minute, the Sith was left alone with his burning fury. Then, as though summoned to further fuel his ire, the projector at his console illuminated once more, a darkened, solitary room surrounding a single figure sprawled in a wide chair.

The figure said nothing, almost ignoring that the call had originated from that side. But he did not need to hear a voice to know who would make such a move.

From beneath an oversized hood, golden-specked eyes rose slowly to meet his face. Even in the darkness Vader saw her painted lips curve into a smirk. Nonchalantly, a gloved hand pushed away the hood and Vader's temper flared another level as his eyes stared plainly into hers.

Vicenious savored the moment silently, before slowly cocking her head to the side with a loud sigh. "I suppose I am cleaning up yet another one of your messes."

He did not bother to address her; there existed no pretense of friendship or respect between them. She would get to her point soon enough.

"Tell whichever soldier you put in charge that I will be leading the ground assault and - "

"You will stay on the _Devastator_ until told otherwise. Veers is more than capable of handling-"

"Veers?" She leaned forward with a scoff of disbelief. "You put him in charge? Veers is an unbending, half-brained fool. I thought you wanted to succeed this time? Perhaps if you stopped letting your pets do the hard work, you'd actually be the threat the -"

Vader snapped back with clap of power in the Force, successfully halting the other's rant. The smirk on her lips grew wider and Vader felt a similar blow in return, perfectly matching his in strength and intensity. She watched him, silently, through the screen. _Do you really want to do this now?_ Her eyes asked, power dancing eagerly for his response.

For a moment, Vader considered following through, ridding himself of this thorn once and for all. But a snippet of sense tugged at the rage her presence caused and held him back. There would be better times to deal with her. For now, he had larger concerns and she could not be a distraction. "You may lead an advance team with Blizzard Squadron." He conceded. "You will stay out of Veers' way. You will obey _his_ orders. And you will leave Skywalker for me."

Vicenious smiled, weighing the compromise against her pride. She could press for more, but it was enough, for now, that Vader consented. Like him, she knew there would plenty of future opportunities to have her way. "Good enough."

The screen flickered out of existence, darkness once again flooding both rooms.

The icy base was in an uproar. Only recently unpacked equipment was hurriedly re-stuffed back into their containers while smaller ships and speeders docked on one of the three larger transport ships. Leia watched as, once again, they were forced to evacuate under fear of the empire. After recuperating at Titan Base for a few months, the unofficially titled Yavin Cell, had bounced from temporary base to temporary base expanding their fleet in ships and personnel, but never long off the empire's scopes. Hoth had been the longest they went unnoticed, yet here they were again, after only a handful of months, running with their tails between their legs.

Leia sighed angrily as she watched the radar over the controller's shoulder. Their shield would hold strong against any aerial attack but a ground force had been noticed a few clicks out. In response, the rebels prepared to launch their small fighters to act as support while the transports flew for freedom. It was a plan well executed several times before and yet, the crownless princess still found herself tense with worry.

"Keep me updated on every move they make."

"Of course, Princess."

Veers stood confidently in the control center of his lead AT-AT, the hulking, marching weapon moving determinedly across the landscape, four identical walkers trailing not too far behind. He loved these technological marvels. Thick, armored hulls impenetrable to all forms of blaster fire, armed with dual high-powered long-distance lasers, and capable of maneuvering any terrain with ease, the walkers were ideal weapons in his eyes. Even if one considered the walker's slow tread a flaw, the mobile weapons were still more advanced and more powerful than any speedy ship.

And yet, he thought with a slight grimace, Vader had still insisted on sending _her_.

The roar of a personnel carrier ship passing just above came as though cued by his thoughts, and the general watched through the AT-AT's eyes as two carrier shuttles landed in the distance, just before the ridge that marked rebel territory. From this distance, his naked eye could make out only one figure, a deep black dot exiting the ship, but he knew she came with over forty skilled troopers. For a moment, he almost pitied the rebellion ground forces; they had no idea what was coming. But as quickly as it came, the feeling slipped away. They deserved every bit of whatever she would do.

 _xxxxx_

The Snowspeeders screamed as they raced from the hangar, over the deep dugout in which Garik Rodan, trench and ground commander, hunkered deep. The rhythmic rumble of the still far-off walkers was momentarily interrupted as the base reverberated in the wake of their fighters. He hesitated to feel relieved as the team raced toward the threat. Imperial walkers, even so few, were nearly impossible to defeat. Best case scenario, the commander thought darkly: the speeders would provide a long enough distraction for the rest of the base to make their escape.

Forcing his attention back to his own team, Garik pulled his mind to the matter at hand. "All right!" his voice boomed over wind and space, three dozen faces of vastly differing ages swung to look at him. "We are the last line between those forces and the base! I want every canon we have armed and - "

"Sir!"

Garik turned to the interrupting soldier darkly, quite ready to give a verbal lashing, when he followed the man's outstretched hand to the horizon. Between the walkers and the trench, two Imperial carrier transports had just landed and from them a slew of troopers spilled onto the snow. Their winter wear camouflaged their full numbers, but it wasn't them he found worrisome; a black figure, cloak whipping wildly in the wind, lead the charge. He felt the blood drain from his face and quickly raised the viewers around his neck for a better look.

Magnified so it seemed they stood face-to-face, he could clearly see the figure turn to watch him. A mask without eyes, nose, or mouth, as black as night, and splattered in red tendrils, obscured the face. Just as matching armor - an elongated, layered chest piece that ended at the hips, shin and forearm guards all worn over a trooper-standard body suit – hid all but the basic shape of the figure's slim body. For as little as he could discern from a look, something about the soldier horrified him.

 _xxxxx_

Across the snow, Darth Vicenious stood, bathing in the bitter terror coursing through the Force from the rebel ditch. They had seen her, she knew that, but that show was only just beginning. In a single swift move, she drew and ignited her saber, the signature red blade of the Sith humming in her hands. The terror spiked and she drew a shuddering breath as her excitement rose to match it. Eyes wild beneath the mask, she forced herself to remember the troopers behind her and turned only to issue her order. "Kill them all."

All at once, the troopers sprang to life, racing across the snow, firing into the trench as soon as their targets came into view. Just behind them Vicenious followed, blade practically dragging as the troopers moved forward. From the other side of the field, the rebel squad's attack sprung to meet them, smaller canons and hand-held blasters refocusing on the troopers.

Vicenious turned her attention to the canons behind the trench. One hand raised, she Forced the two most bothersome canons to move, rotating each toward its neighbor, mechanism still firing. The explosion as they blasted each other rocked the trench, burning debris raining into the slim path.

Ahead, a few braver troopers took advantage of the ceasefire and closed the gap. Succinct, precise shots cleared two manned canons of their controllers. The rebels broke formation, scattering. Some clambered up the walls in either direction, while most flung themselves to the sides, fleeing for the far easterly and westerly sections not yet under direct attack.

Around them, the louder blasts of the walker's lasers still rained against the ground.

Garik watched the mayhem from his position east of the attack. They would not last long against this bombardment. Between the walkers and the Sith, he knew they were outmatched. Still, he would not give up. "Fall back and regroup at mark two-three-five! Two-three–five!" he shouted, rallying anyone within range. Almost eagerly, the browbeaten rebels retreated, firing vainly at the imperial soldiers.

Vicenious whipped her head in their direction and frowned. Escaping was not part of the plan. Swiftly, she slipped through the wall her troopers created and leapt into the pit. Her blade danced as she bounced blaster fire back toward its shooter, clearing a path with rapid strokes and driving the sword into the nearest rebel's chest. His scream died in his throat, only a gurgle of agony as his heart burned and body fell. Without even a moment's pause she leapt from the corpse, launching feral-like toward her next victim, slicing, stabbing, and cleaving her way through desperately fleeing the Alliance ranks.

For a moment, sense was lost in the bloody massacre, with even blizzard squadron freezing as they watched in awe, still stationed above the trench. A thud of canon fire shook them loose and they switched tactics to support, providing cover fire for bloodthirsty Sith. There was little they could do without getting in her way and it was clear to them all, she would kill anything in her path.

The rear of his fighter spewed dark, hot smoke, wires and console sparking in the wake of the blast. Luke shook off the momentary stun at being hit. "Dax, you okay?"

Silence.

He glanced over his shoulder, shielded eyes stinging as he took in the limp form of his co-pilot. The young, fresh-faced rebel was unmoving and unresponsive, bloodied. The walker's blast had hit too squarely.

Silently, Luke turned back to the controls, pushing guilt aside. He had grown uncomfortably accepting of death but it still left a small sting whenever it happened. The boy sent up a little prayer for Dax before refocusing on the mission at hand. The walkers were still moving in, and the space between them and the base was getting ever smaller. If he couldn't take the run himself…

"Rogue Three."

"Copy Rogue Leader," Wedge's voice rang back over the comlink.

"Wedge, I've lost my gunner," Luke explained quickly. "You'll have to make this shot. I'll cover you. Set your harpoon and follow me on the next pass."

He could almost hear Wedge grin as the other pilot confirmed the orders. Wedge's snowspeeder pulled a tight loop and fell in behind Luke, the two ships skimming the ground, weaving between blaster fire. Luke banked right, firing toward the lead walker as Wedge hugged tight to the machine's legs. "Activate harpoon."

Wedge's gunner, a pilot of quick learning and experience, complied, firing the tow cable. Magnetic clamps attached to the walker's rear left leg with a soft clunk. Wedge barely had time to compliment the shot as he tilted his fighter in a tight circle around the legs, spacing himself to avoid getting tangled or trapped in the monstrosity's gears. One, two, three passes, the thin cable barely visible even as it looped together, but it would have to do. There was no more cable to give.

"Cable out! Let her go!" The gunner called. Wedge moved to pull away.

"Detach cable."

In perfect sync, the line snapped free of the fighter just as Wedge sped the ship away from the slowly toppling walker. The long, slow legs, moved to make another step and the line tightened around them, bringing it to its knees.

On the ground, a cheer went up as it fell, ground forces racing forward to deal the final blow. Canon and blaster fire showered upon the weapon. Hull damaged, the attacks succeeded in bursting the walker to flames.

Wedge let out a victorious whoop as he lapped the burning hulk of metal. "That got him!"

"Good work, Wedge," came Luke's measured reply. They weren't out of the woods yet. More walkers were on the way and he had only just made out a skirmish in the trench that told him Imps were on the ground as well. They had to continue to hold out just a bit more. The final transports weren't off the ground yet – which meant neither was Leia. His heart clenched at the thought but he forced the anxiety away. She was well protected in the base. He just had to focus on keeping it that way.

Evenly, he completed his lap and sought out his next target: the next nearest walker, lasers tearing a hole in the trench's defenses. Instantly, he sped toward it, calling out to the closest pilot. "Rogue Two, on me. Let's get rid of that thing before it collapses the whole base."

"Copy, Rogue Leader. Coming around."

Luke noted that the ship fell in formation at his right flank and darted toward the walker. Much as he did with Wedge, Luke lined them up for the harpoon shot, spraying a clearing rain of lasers against the hull…and then veered wildly off course as blaster fire blocked his path. Rogue Leader and Rogue Two split, regaining control of their crafts before reforming the attack pattern. "Watch that crossfire boys. This will be a tricky."

The path to the walker was nothing but wide, unprotected landscape. The rebel canons had already been destroyed and ground forces were little help. Luke swore silently. The other walkers, the ones that had nearly shot him from the sky, were out of his range so long as he stuck to Rogue Two. But they were close enough for their own lasers to provide serious trouble. His options limited, Luke broke off, veering toward the distant weapons. "Stay on that one Rogue Two!" he ordered. "I'll draw the other's fire. You focus on bringing that walker down!"

"Roger. Setting for position three." Rogue Two realigned himself for the cable-run as Luke raced into the horizon.

Large lasers continued to litter the air, Luke sweeping around them trying to create a tantalizing target. One walker's head swung lazily in his direction, tusk-like canons lining up to shoot him down. Luke swerved as they fired, skimming just below the blazing red bolts. Well, he had gotten that one's attention. The second one however…he risked a glance outside the window to confirm that the other walker still maintained cover fire on Rogue Two's target.

As though waiting for him to see it, the walker let loose a volley, the bolts speeding for a direct hit. Rogue Two erupted in flames, the pilot's shriek echoing in Luke's ears. The wreckage careened into the powder, exploding a second time, the flames igniting the powerful internal heater.

Luke grimaced. Another cold stone of guilt settled in his chest and another silent prayer sent to the ether before whipping his speeder around. Rogue team was nearly decimated, nothing but a few wounded fliers flitting like gnats around the larger beasts. There was nothing more they could do out here and Luke wasn't going to let anyone else die today. "Rogue Team, return to base."

A few voices called back the affirmative and Luke saw three speeders change direction toward the nearly buried hangar. He could only hope they had done enough.

Scorched bodies – either by blaster fire or saber swipe – formed a carpet at the base of the trench guiding the Imperial forces to the unguarded base entrance. Those rebels that had not fallen, fled, and now Vicenious took a moment to admire her success. Blizzard squadron continued to press forward, breaking apart the armored door and storming the base, but she lingered behind reveling in the battle-scented air. This was an imperial victory through and through. Exactly as she had predicted.

"Darth Vicenious, report your status." Veers' voice crackled through the com-link in her ear and the Sith grimaced, pulling away from the sound.

"I have claimed and am clearing the base."

"Very good. Darth Vader will arrive momentarily to apprehend the survivors."

She chuckled, turning her eyes skyward. "Just like a good dog."

The base rumbled viciously again, chunks of ice raining on the path. Han instinctively threw his arms over Leia's head, shielding her from the debris. The base was falling apart under the barrage from outside and the twisting maze of tunnels that had made up their home were becoming more and more treacherous. Already an avalanche of rock and snow blocked from the main transport bay, forcing the group – C3PO and R2D2 tottered along with them – to make their way to the farther hangar where the Falcon stood undergoing repair.

The pilot tried not to let his worry show as he pulled the princess along behind him. The Falcon had taken a serious beating on their last trek and for the past two weeks he had been damn near rebuilding every internal component just to get the hunk to fly again. Just what it would be capable of against a group of star destroyers while fleeing from a collapsing mine was something he refused to contemplate. The cargo ship was the only way off the planet now so it had to work.

"Come on, this way!"

Leia followed quickly behind him, wrenching her arm free as much for balance as it was for pride. She still had not found a place in her heart to accept him for not leaving at the first opening. Too many times she thought she could count on him only to have everything thrown back in her face. Childish as it may have been to fuss over that right now, Leia could not allow herself to be dragged around like a broken damsel. Han threw her a quick look of indignant confusion that quickly shifted into alarm.

Slipping into the nearly collapsed entryway of the passage, Han could just make out the stormtroopers hooded-white masks. His eyes met with the leader and a shout went up as the soldiers scrambled hurriedly, single file through the opening.

"Damnit." He whipped his head forward, glad to the see the hangar coming into view and raced forward. "Let's go! Let's go!"

As the door slid open, Chewbacca roared his greeting, obvious frustrated worry in his voice as he paced before the ship.

"It's not my fault!" Han shot back as Leia raced on board, the droids tottering behind at their best speed. "We had to take the long way!" He breathed a brief sigh as the door to the hangar slid close behind 3PO, but did not pause to savor the moment. "Is she working?"

The wookie let out a few barks, head tilted to the side as he gestured to a few areas of the ship.

Han deftly waved off the concerns, already sealing the docking ramp. "Fine, fine, but she'll fly, right?" Chewie gave a noncommittal nod-shrug. "Then let's get outta here." Han sped to his seat, cranking the engines to life. They wound and ground weakly before whirring to silence. Angrily, the pilot slammed his fist to the console and leapt to his feet, zooming about the ship flipping switches and manually rerouting power.

Squeezed out of the way, Leia watched, lips contorted into a bitter frown. On one hand, she didn't want to die just yet, but on the other watching him flail over his prized ship was just the right kind of karma. "Would it help if I got out and pushed?" she said smugly with only a small note of sincerity.

"It might." Han bit back, sparing only a glance in her direction before once again racing off to retry the engines. This time they roared to life, ship's interior glowing as the multi-lighted consoles illuminated with power.

Leia shook her head, speaking loudly over 3PO's incessant worried chatter. "This bucket of bolts is never going to get us past that blockade."

Chewbacca grunted gruffly and Han shot them both a look. "This baby's got a few surprises left in her." The pilot plopped into his seat, Chewbacca more gracefully joining at his side, and pressed the engines for more power just as the hangar rocked violently with an explosion. Leia sprung forward, watching as the smoldering hole that had been the door of the hangar spilled stormtroopers into the room. Some fired vainly on the hull but most focused immediately on setting up their canon. Worry spiked at the sight and she pedaled back into her seat, "Han…"

"I got 'em." He tapped a few more buttons and the Falcon fired a few shots into the white mass. Troopers yelped and screamed as they were flung away from the ship and Han shot Leia a smile. "See?"

Despite herself, the princess flashed a brief, relieved smile of her own. "Someday you're going to be wrong and I hope I'm there to see it."

Han scoffed. "So much for a thank you, right Chewie?"

The wookie only grunted in response, poised for take-off.

"Punch it!"

All at once the ship shot from the hangar, useless blaster and canon fire coloring their wake. Stars raced toward them as they climbed, the crumbling, smoking base quickly shrinking behind them.

 _ **To Be Continued….**_


End file.
